how preservice teachers' attitudes and beliefs about writing

HOWPRESERVICETEACHERS’ATTITUDESANDBELIEFSABOUTWRITING

INFORMTHEIRVIEWOFWRITINGINSTRUCTION:ACASESTUDYby

DeniseGlaserMalloy

Adissertationsubmittedinpartialfulfillmentoftherequirementsforthedegree

of

DoctorofEducationin

CurriculumandInstruction

MONTANASTATEUNIVERSITYBozeman,Montana

November2016

©COPYRIGHTby

DeniseGlaserMalloy

2016

AllRightsReserved

ii

DEDICATION

Toeveryonewhowrites

iii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Asaparent,Iwholeheartedlyagreethat“ittakesavillagetoraiseachild.”

Butasadoctoralcandidate,Ibelievethisaxiomholdstrueforthosewhopursue

advanceddegrees.Forme,ithastakenavillagetoreachmydestinationingraduate

school.Iamgratefulforthesupportofmyfamily,mywiseandcaringcommittee

members,andmyfriendsthroughoutthisjourney.

Dr.AnnEllsworth,mycommitteechair,deservesthehighestorderofpraise.

Herunwaveringfaithinmyideasprovidedtheconfidencetopursuemydoctorate.

Merewordscannotexpressmygratitudeforherguidance,expertise,andkindness.

Whilealwaysholdingmetothehighestofstandards,herencouragementhelped

propelmetothefinishline.Ithasbeenaprivilege,indeed,tobepartofhercircle.

Mythoughtfulcommitteemembersgavemeunparalleledsupport.Dr.David

Henderson,Dr.JoyceHerbeck,Dr.ChristineRogers‐Stanton,andDr.SarahSchmitt‐

Wilson,Iamhumbledandever‐soappreciativethatyoueachwerewillingtofreely

sharethewisdomofyourcollectiveexperienceandyourprecioustimewithme.

Thankyouforinspiringmythinking,challengingmyknowledge,andmakingme

seeknotonlynewanswers,butnewquestions.

Imustalsogiveanenormousthankyoutothestudentswhoagreedto

participateinmystudyandsharetheircandid,intenselypersonalresponses.

Withoutthem,thisdissertationwouldnothavebeenpossible.Iamdeeplygrateful.

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TABLEOFCONTENTS

1.INTRODUCTION.....................................................................................................................................1BackgroundoftheStudy.....................................................................................................................2StatementoftheProblem...................................................................................................................3BackgroundoftheResearcher..........................................................................................................5ResearchQuestions...............................................................................................................................6LimitationsoftheStudy.......................................................................................................................6DelimitationsoftheStudy..................................................................................................................7SignificanceoftheStudy......................................................................................................................72.LITERATUREREVIEW......................................................................................................................11HistoryofWritingInstruction........................................................................................................11DevelopmentofProcessWriting...................................................................................................13Writing–the“NeglectedR”..............................................................................................................17WritingInstructioninTeacherEducationPrograms...........................................................22TheNationalWritingProject:AddressingtheConcerns....................................................26TheUniqueSocializationofTeachers..........................................................................................28SituatedLearning.................................................................................................................................29RoleofAttitudeinWriting................................................................................................................31DevelopmentofWritingAttitudesandBeliefs........................................................................32RoleofSelf‐EfficacyinAttitudesandBeliefsaboutWriting..............................................34PreserviceTeachers’AttitudesandBeliefsaboutWriting.................................................36ChapterSummary.................................................................................................................................393.METHODOLOGY...................................................................................................................................41CasestudyResearchDesign.............................................................................................................43SocialConstructivism.........................................................................................................................45BackgroundoftheResearcherMyWritingHistory..............................................................46MyTeachingHistory...........................................................................................................................50RoleoftheResearcher........................................................................................................................54SiteSelection...........................................................................................................................................56HistoryoftheTeacherEducationPrograminThisStudy..................................................58HistoryofEDU330–EmergentLiteracy....................................................................................60TheCourse:EDU330–EmergentLiteracy................................................................................61Participants.............................................................................................................................................62DataCollection.......................................................................................................................................65

WritingApprehensionTest(WAT)...................................................................................66Questionnaire.............................................................................................................................67

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TABLEOFCONTENTS‐CONTINUED

Semi‐StructuredInterviewsandGraphicRepresentation......................................68ClassObservations....................................................................................................................70FocusGroup.................................................................................................................................71StudentWorkSamplesandJournalEntries..................................................................72AdditionalInformation...........................................................................................................73

DataAnalysisStrategiesandProcess..........................................................................................74MethodsofAchievingTrustworthinessandCredibility......................................................75ChapterSummary.................................................................................................................................764.RESULTS.................................................................................................................................................78Participants.............................................................................................................................................80ReluctantWriters.................................................................................................................................81

Sadie................................................................................................................................................81SadietheWriter..........................................................................................................85SadietheFutureWritingTeacher.......................................................................83

Sydney............................................................................................................................................84SydneytheWriter......................................................................................................85SydneytheFutureWritingTeacher...................................................................87

SummaryofReluctantWriters............................................................................................88EmergingWriter...................................................................................................................................89

Amber.............................................................................................................................................89AmbertheWriter.......................................................................................................91AmbertheFutureWritingTeacher....................................................................91

SummaryoftheEmergingWriter......................................................................................92ConfidentWriters..................................................................................................................................93

Kay...................................................................................................................................................93KaytheWriter..............................................................................................................94KaytheFutureWritingTeacher..........................................................................95

Lily...................................................................................................................................................96LilytheWriter..............................................................................................................98LilytheFutureWritingTeacher...........................................................................99

Gina...............................................................................................................................................100GinatheWriter.........................................................................................................101GinatheFutureWritingTeacher......................................................................102

Mary.............................................................................................................................................103MarytheWriter........................................................................................................104MarytheFutureWritingTeacher.....................................................................106

SummaryoftheConfidentWriters................................................................................107Themes...................................................................................................................................................109

ProvidingExplicitandMeaningfulFeedback............................................................110

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TABLEOFCONTENTS‐CONTINUED

OfferingChoiceinWritingTopics...................................................................................113MakingWritingFun/Enjoyable/HavinganEnthusiasticTeacher...................115ProvidingAdequateInstructioninWritingFoundations,Skill,andGrammar................................................................................................................116AllowingAdequateTimeforWritingPractice...........................................................118HelpingStudentsUnderstandthe“Why”ofWriting..............................................119

ChapterSummary.................................................................................................................................1215.CONCLUSION......................................................................................................................................122ApprenticeshipofObservationandSituatedLearning.....................................................122MeaningfulFeedback.......................................................................................................................125Choice.....................................................................................................................................................128MakingWritingFun,Enjoyable,andPossessinganEnthusiasm..................................130InstructioninFoundations,Skills,andGrammar................................................................131Practice...................................................................................................................................................133Understandingthe“Why”ofWriting........................................................................................135Recommendations.............................................................................................................................136

PreserviceTeachersasWriters.......................................................................................137StudentsasFutureWritingTeachers............................................................................140

SuggestionsforFutureResearch.................................................................................................142SummaryandConclusion...............................................................................................................143REFERENCESCITED............................................................................................................................145APPENDICES...........................................................................................................................................154

APPENDIXA:EDU330–EmergentLiteracysyllabus–Spring2016..............155APPENDIXB:Daly‐MillerWritingApprehensionTest(WAT)...........................172APPENDIXC:WrittenQuestionnaire.............................................................................176APPENDIXD:GraphicRepresentation:WritingMemoriesMatrix..................178APPENDIXE:Semi‐StructuredInterview#1.............................................................181APPENDIXF:FocusGroupQuestions............................................................................183APPENDIXG:Semi‐StructuredInterview#2.............................................................185

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LISTOFTABLES

Table Page

1. EnrollmentbyGender......................................................................................................57

2. SummaryofParticipants................................................................................................65

3. DataSources.........................................................................................................................65

4. Participants’AttitudesandSelf‐Confidence...........................................................81

5. Pre/PostWATTestScores..........................................................................................109

6. Feedback.............................................................................................................................110

7. Choice...................................................................................................................................114

8. MakingWritingFun,EnjoyableandPossessingEnthusiasm......................115

9. Foundation,Skills,andGrammar.............................................................................117

10. Practice................................................................................................................................118

11. Understandingthe“Why”ofWriting.....................................................................120

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GLOSSARY Attitudes:“internalbeliefsthatinfluenceactions”(Schunk,2012,p.220).

Beliefs:“unquestionedpresumptionsandpersonaltruths”whichare“built

onmemorableepisodesin[aperson’slife]”(Brindley&Schneider,2002,p.328).

Pre‐serviceteacher:studentswhoareeducationmajorscurrentlyinthe

methodscourses,butnotyetinstudentteaching.

Writing:useofthewrittenwordtoconveymeaning.Forpurposesofthis

study,writingreferstobothformal,academiccommunicationaswellasinformal

expressionsuchasjournalorletterwriting.

Englishlanguagearts:includesreading,writing,speaking,listening,and

viewing(NationalCouncilofTeachersofEnglish,2015)

Methodsclass:courseworkthatrequirespreserviceteacherstoblend

theoryandpracticethroughplacementinaK‐8classroomworkingunderthe

supervisionofacooperatingteacher.

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ABSTRACT

Attitudesandbeliefsaboutwritingheldbypreserviceteachersplayasignificantroleinhowtheywillapproachwritinginstructionintheirfutureclassrooms.Teacherswhoengageinregularwritingpractice,possessknowledgeofEnglishlanguagefoundationsandgrammar,andhaveapositiveattitudeaboutwritingwillbebetterpreparedtoaddressthechallengesofteachingstudentshowtowrite.Thisstudyexaminedtheattitudesandbeliefsofsevenelementaryeducationmajorswhowereenrolledinonewriting‐intensiveEnglishlanguageartscourseduringthespringsemesterin2016.

TheparticipantsinthisqualitativecasestudywereselectedaftertakingtheWritingApprehensionTest(WAT)aspartoftheircoursework.Asocialconstructivismparadigmprovidedthetheoreticalframeworkforthisstudy.Datasourcesincluded:aquestionnaire,twosemi‐structuredinterviews,awritingmemoriesmatrix,dailyclassobservations,afocusgroup,fieldobservernotes,andstudentworksamplesandjournalentries.Thedatawasanalyzedinthecontextofstudentaswriterandstudentasfuturewritingteacher. Sixthemesemergedwithintheframeworkoftheanalysisforbothwriterandfuturewritingteacher:providingexplicitandmeaningfulfeedback;offeringchoiceinwritingtopics;makingwritingfun,enjoyable,andpossessinganenthusiasmforthesubject;providingadequateinstructioninwritingfoundations,skill,andgrammar;allowingadequatetimeforwritingpractice;andhelpingstudentsunderstandthe“why”ofwriting.Thisstudyoffersinsightintohowpreserviceteachersperceiveandpracticethewritingprocess,whatfactorswereinfluentialinthedevelopmentoftheirattitudesandbeliefs,andwhatrolethosewillplayinwritinginstruction.Inaddition,thisstudyexploreshowprovidingpositiveexperienceswiththewritingprocesswithinthecontextofthesixthemescanbolsterconfidenceandskilllevelsforsoon‐to‐beteachers.Finally,thisstudyconcludeswithsuggestionsforhowteachereducationprogramscanoptimizeinstructiontoremediateandreinforceskills,fosterpositiveexperienceswithwriting,andsupportfutureteachersintheirjourney.

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CHAPTERONE‐INTRODUCTION

Writing,thecreativeeffort,theuseoftheimagination,shouldcomefirst,‐atleastforsomepartofeverydayofyourlife.Itisawonderfulblessingifyouwilluseit(Ueland,1983,p.14).

Thepurposeofthisstudyistoexaminepreserviceteachers’attitudesand

beliefsaboutwritingandtheirimpactuponwritinginstructionintheK‐8classroom.

Workingcloselywithprospectiveeducatorsduringtheirformativeteacher

preparationcourseworkandinstudentteachinghasgivenmeauniqueperspective

intothemakingofateacher.Thesestudentsenterteachereducationprogramswith

avarietyofexperiencesrelatedtoschoolingandacademicpreparationwhichform

beliefsandattitudesabouttheirownabilitiesandmasteryofsubjects.Ofcourse,

thisholdstrueforwriting.Somestudentsmayhavehadahit‐or‐missapproachto

writingintheirelementaryschooling.Othersmayhavenotreceiveddirect

instructioningrammarnoranyclear,constructivefeedback.Stillothersmaylacka

thoroughunderstandingofrevisionandediting.Withthecurrentemphasison

writinginthecurriculumaspartoftheCommonCoreEnglishLanguageArts

Standards,whichsetcompetencyrequirementsforK–12writing,thereisno

questionthatwritinginstructionwillnowplayabiggerroleinelementary

classrooms(CommonCoreStateStandards[CCSS],2015).

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BackgroundoftheStudy

Throughoutastudent’sschoolcareer,hisorherattitudesandbeliefsare

shapedbyacademicexperiences.Likewise,otherfactors,suchasfamily,can

contributetothedevelopmentofthesenotionsregardingtheirabilitytolearna

particularsubject.Developedovertime,theseattitudesandbeliefsareinstrumental

inshapingperformance(Brindley&Schneider,2002;Rosen,Glennie,Dalton,

Lennon&Bozick,2010;Shofel,1991).Eventually,theyformthestudent’score

expectationsabouttheabilitytomastersubjectmatter(Parajes,2003).Depending

upontheexperiencesoftheindividual,theattitudesandbeliefsformedmaybe

positive,negative,orneutral.

Whenstudentsentertheuniversity,whetherornotthereisalevelof

awareness,thesepreviouslyformedattitudesaccompanythem(Florio‐Ruane&

Lensmire,1990;Lortie,1975).Forstudentspursuingacareerinteaching,these

dispositionsplayanevenmorecriticalrole(Lortie,1975).Withoutquestion,these

attitudesandbeliefs,whichmayhavebeenformedmorethanadecadeago,will

haveawide‐sweepingimpactacrossthecurriculum,includingpedagogicalpractices

(Dart,Bouton‐Lewis,Brownlee,&McCrindle,1998;Whitney&Friedrich,2013).

Lortie(1975)investigatedthesignificantroleattitudesplayonteachersinthe

classroom,intheformulationoftheiridentityasaprofessional,andinhowthese

attitudespermeateeveryinstructionaldecision.

Theattitudesandbeliefsthatteachershaveaboutthemselvesaswritersare

particularlyimportant.TheNationalWritingProject,professionaldevelopmentin

3

responsetoteachers’concernsthattheyareunpreparedorunderpreparedtoteach

writing,providescompellingevidencethatourcurrentteacherpreparation

programsarenotadequatelypreparingstudentstoteachwriting(Bratcher&

Stroble,1994;Street,2003;Whitney&Fredich,2013).Moreover,thisunderscores

thenotionthatnewteacherslackconfidenceorskillsinwriting(Bratcher&Stroble,

1994;Street,2003;Whitney&Fredich,2013).Yetdespitebeingenrolledin

accreditedteachertrainingprograms,manypreserviceteachersfeelunpreparedor

underpreparedaswritersandasfutureteachersofwriting(Zimmerman,Morgan&

Kidder‐Brown,2014).

StatementoftheProblem

Researchclearlydemonstratesthepowerfulinfluencethatpriorattitudes

playinhowapreserviceteacherwillultimatelyapproachteaching,including

writinginstruction(Chambless&Bass,1995;Colby&Stapleton,2006;Lortie,1975;

Morgan,2010;Street,2003,Street&Stang,2009).Theseself‐efficacybeliefs,formed

overaperiodoftime,willgreatlyinfluencethepreserviceteacher’sviewsofthe

writingprocessandinstruction(Bandura,1997).Understandingtheseattitudesand

beliefs,howtheyareformed,andwhatcanbedonetochangethemcanhelpguide

andinformtheapproachtowritinginstructioninteachereducationprograms.

AccordingtoEsquith(2007),“simplesolutionstocomplexproblemsareembraced

fartoooften”(p.xii).Forpreserviceteacherstobecomecompetentandconfident

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writers,teachereducationprogramsmustacknowledgethataproblemexistsand

takestepstoremediatethedeficiencies.

NotonlymustfutureteachersunderstandthefundamentalsoftheEnglish

language,theymustbeactiveparticipantsintheprocess(Gebhardt,1977).Inother

words,writingteachersmustwrite(Augsburger,1998;Bloom,1990;Brooks,2010;

Cremin,2006;Morgan,2010;Murray,2003;Whyte,Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse

&Talbot,2007).Considertheprospectoflearningtodrivefromsomeonewhocould

recitethedriver’smanualverbatim,yethasneveroperatedamotorvehicle.Could

onelearngolffromsomeonewhohasneverhitateeshotorputtedagolfballonthe

green(Gebhardt,1977)?Sowhywouldwecontemplatethatapersonwhodoesnot

activelyengageintheprocessofwritingcouldteachanotherhowtowrite?Could

thatpersonpossiblyexpressthefrustrationsandfearofstaringattheblankpageor

sharethesatisfactionofthefinishedpieceofclearandconciseprose?Accordingto

BratcherandStroble(1994),ColbyandStapleton(2006),Morgan(2010),andSmith

(1983),theanswerisno.

Tofullyunderstandwriting,futureteachersmustexperiencethefrustrations

andjoysofwriting(Augsburger,1998;Bloom,1990;Gebhardt,1977;Murray,

2003).Theymustwrestlewiththeirfearofrevealingapartofthemselvesonthe

page(Augsburger,1998;Bloom.1990;Cremin,2006).Gebhardt(1977)statedthat

futureteachersofwritingmustbecome“experiencedintheagoniesoftryingto

write”(p.137).AccordingtoCremin(2006),teacherswhoarewritersarebetter

preparedtosharetheinherentchallengesastudentencounterswhilewriting.

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Zinsser(2006)stateditsuccinctly:“writingishardwork”(p.9).Inwriting,aswell

asinallofeducation,inthewordsofEsquith(2007),“therearenoshortcuts”(p.

xii).

BackgroundoftheResearcher

Asonewhohasengagedinthedailypracticeofwritingforthelasttwenty‐

sevenyears,Ifindthatwritingbringsmeclarityandasenseofdelight.Occasionally

whenIstareattheblankpageorscreen,adeepleveloffrustration,angst,andfear

result,asitdoesforanyonewhowrites.Althoughthetaskofwritingtakes

enormouseffort,forme,itisworthit.

IadmitthatIloveeverythingaboutwriting.Thejoyofhavingacreative

outlet.Theabilitytothinkonthepagetosortandunderstandmyinner‐most

thoughtsortomasternewsubjectmatter.Thewonderofstringingwordstogether,

likesparklinggems,inpreciselytherightordertoconveyideas.Thethrillof

knowingthatmychoiceofwordshasthepowertobringsomeonetolaughteror

tears.Initially,Ibelievedthateveryoneelsesharedmydeepandcompellingloveof

thewrittenword.However,throughmyworkwithuniversityfreshmenand

studentsinateacherpreparationprogram,IlearnedthatIwasmistaken.

Afterenteringmydoctoralprogramincurriculumandinstruction,writing

andthewritingprocessquicklyemergedtotheforefrontofmyinterestareas.While

teachingaseminarsectionforeducationstudents,andlatercompletingateaching

internshipwithaseniorprofessorinanearlylearning‐to‐readcourse,Idiscovereda

6

similartrend.Aswritingwasdiscussed,studentswouldfreelyadmittheir

apprehensions.“I’mnotaverygoodwriter,”wasfrequentlytheirlament.Others

expressedopenhostilityaboutwriting:“Ihatewriting,”“It’sachore,”and“Writing

issohard.”Afterlisteningtopreservicestudents’comments,onequestionemerged

againandagaininmymind–whatimpactwilltheseattitudeshaveontheirability

toteachwritingintheK‐8classroom?Iwonderedifandhowtheirless‐than‐

positivemindsetswouldimpactpreserviceteachers’approachtowriting

instructionintheirfutureclassroom.

ResearchQuestions

1.Howdopreserviceteachersperceiveandpracticethewritingprocess?

2.Whatexperiencesshapedtheirattitudesandbeliefsaboutthewritingprocess?

3.Howdopreserviceteachers’viewsoftheprocessinformtheirthinkingabout

teachingwriting?

LimitationsoftheStudy

Thisstudyislimitedtoelementaryeducationmajorsinonewriting‐

intensive,EnglishLanguageArts(ELA)courseatonewesternUnitedStatesland‐

grantuniversity.Consequently,thedataislimitedinscopeandthefindings

potentiallyapplicableonlytothisparticularteachereducationprogram.Atthis

institution,thestudentpopulationispredominatelyWhiteandthemajorityof

studentsdeclaredaselementaryeducationmajorsarefemale.Consequently,the

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genderandethnicitydiversityofthisislimitedduetotheenrollmentinthis

institutionandinthecourse.

Anotherlimitationofthestudyisthepossibilitythatstudentsadjustedtheir

responsesoutofconcernthattheywouldbesharedwiththeinstructor.Although

studentswereassuredthattheirparticipationwascompletelyconfidential,andat

nopointinthestudydidIshareanyinformationregardingtheparticipants’

identitiesorresponseswiththeinstructor,thepossibilityexiststhatsomeoftheir

answerswerealteredbasedonthisapprehension.

Finally,thisstudyusesconveniencesamplefromthepoolofstudentsinthis

course.Asaresult,thefindingsmayreflecttheexperiencesofalimitednumberof

students.However,everyeffortwasmadetoobtainarangeofstudentattitudes

aboutwritingtoprovidethegreatestdetailandscope.

DelimitationsoftheStudy

Thisstudywillexaminestudentsinoneliteracymethodscourse.Students

willhavecompletedapproximatelytwoyearsofthecoreeducationcurriculumprior

totheirentranceintheteachereducationprogram.Noparticipantswillbeinthe

studentteachingphaseoftheirprogram;allarejuniorstanding.Secondary

educationmajorswillnotbeexaminedinthisstudy.

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SignificanceoftheStudy

Theabilitytocommunicateclearly,succinctly,andcompetentlyinwritingis

anessentialskillforthe21stcentury(CommonCoreStateStandards,2015).

Whetheronewishestosharetheresultsofresearch,gainentryintotheworkforce

orhighereducation,orpenasentimentofloveandaffection,atbest,theeffective

useofthewrittenwordcanbethedifferencebetweenconveyingalackluster,

mundanemessageandonethathasaprofoundimpact.Unclearorincoherent

writingmayresultinagarbledcommunication,wherethereaderisunabletoglean

themeaningthewriterintendedtoconvey.Atworst,thewriter’smeaningmaybe

lostinaseaofcompletelyunintelligiblewords,thoughts,andideas.

ThemostrecentNationalAssessmentofEducationalProgressinGrades8

and12fortheyear2011(NationalCenterforEducationStatistics[NAEP],2012)

confirmedthattheoutlookforwritingisdismalatbest.Accordingtothe2011

NAEP,over70%ofstudentsingrades8and12arewritingatthebasicorbelow

basiclevels.Asaresult,manyofthesestudentsareenteringuniversitieswithalack

ofmasteryofeventhemostbasicwritingskills.Someofthesestudentswill

eventuallybecometeachers.

Asthesestudentsenteruniversitiesandteachereducationprograms,the

problemiscomplicatedfurther.Atthe1300teachereducationprogramsacrossthe

nation,instructioninwritingmethodscontinuestobeignored(Daisey,2009).

AccordingtoTulley(2013),only“24.6%ofEnglishdepartmentsofferedcoursesin

theteachingofwritingtopreserviceteacherssincethelate1970s”(p.38).This

9

uniformlackofcourseworkdevotedsolelytowritingistruedespiteTheNational

CommissiononWriting(2003)recommendationthat“universitiescanhelpadvance

commonexpectationsbyrequiringcoursesinteachingwritingforallprospective

teachers”(p.32).Moreover,stateshavethepowertobuttressthisexpectationby

“insistingonsuccessfulcompletionofacourseinwritingtheoryandpracticeasa

conditionofteacherlicensing”(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.32).

However,thiscalltoactionhasbeenunheeded.

Onthecontinuumofliteracyresearch,thereisanoveralldearthofresearch

aboutwriting(Tulley,2013).Inthecontextofteachereducationprograms,some

studieshavebeenconductedregardingwritingattitudesofcurrentpractitionersin

thefield.TheNationalWritingProjectacknowledgedthatteacherswholack

confidenceintheirwritingabilitieswill“trulyneverbeabletoteachtheirstudents

towritewell”(Street&Stang,2009,p.76).ThroughthecreationoftheNational

WritingProject,professionaldevelopmentisinplacetobridgethegapbetween

theoryandpractice,helpingteacherstransformintoconfidentandcompetent

writers.

However,nosuchsafetynetexistsforpreserviceteachers.Thereisno

uniformityintheamountofinstructiononwritingpedagogyrequiredinteacher

educationprograms(Chambless&Bass,2010;Daisey,2009;Morgan,2010;Tulley,

2013).Likewise,theamountoftimespentwritingintheseprogramsvaries

dramatically(Daisey,2009;Norman&Spencer,2005;Tulley,2013).Asaresult,itis

nosurprisethatteachersareenteringtheprofessionwithvaryingattitudesabout

10

writing,skills,andself‐confidenceaboutthemselvesaswriters.However,research

demonstratesthatattitudesarefluidandcanbechanged(Street&Stang,2009).As

theNationalWritingProjectsoclearlyillustrates,theinterplayofallthesefactors

willinfluencethenewteacher’sabilitytoandattitudesaboutteachingwriting

(Whyte,Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse&Talbot,2007).Asaresult,thereisa

tremendousneedformoreresearchregardingwritinginteachereducation

programs,abouttheattitudesandbeliefsaboutwritingthatpreserviceteachers

bringtotheseprograms,andwhattheseprogramscandotoinfluencethem.

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CHAPTERTWO–LITERATUREREVIEW

Wemust speak to our studentswith an honesty tempered bycompassion:Ourwordswillliterallydefinethewaystheyperceivethemselvesaswriters(Fletcher,1993,p.19).

HistoryofWritingInstruction Overall,therearefewspecifichistoricaldocumentsthatprovideaclear

descriptionofthehistoryofwritinginstructionintheUnitedStates(Hawkins&

Razali,2012).Infact,thereis“nosingularversionofhistorytorecounthere,for

multiplehistoriesofwritinginstructionintheU.S.exist”(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.

306).Formostofthenineteenthcentury,writinginstructionamountedtolittle

morethananemphasisonhandwritingtechnique,(NationalCouncilofTeachersof

EnglishReport,2009)andmasteryofspelling(Graves,1994).Duringthattime

writingwasconsidered“thephysicalactofputtinginktopaper”(Hawkins&Razali,

2012,p.306).Atthecloseofthenineteenthcentury,writinginstructionwas

typicallyofferedattheendoftheelementaryschoolyears,basedonthelogicthat

studentswouldbebetterpreparedtowriteoncetheyhadmasteredbasicliteracy

skills(Hawkins&Razali,2012).

Aroundthetransitiontothetwentiethcentury,classroomsofferedpractice

ingrammar,punctuation,andspellingwithteacherled“sentencecorrection

exercises”(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.310).Whileletterwritingpracticewas

common,manytimesstudentssimplydemonstratedproficiencybyreplicatinga

samplepieceofwriting(Hawkins&Razali,2012).AfterWorldWarI,educators

12

begantoembraceamoreprogressiveviewinspired,inpart,byJohnDewey

(Hawkins&Razali,2012).Asthetransitionmovedtoward“individualismandself‐

expression,”educatorswerechargedwithcreatinganenvironmenttofoster

creativity(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.310).Textbooksinthe1940sfeatured

“chaptersforteachingwrittencomposition,”ashiftfromthefocusonstrictly

grammarandhandwriting(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.310).Throughoutthe1950s

and60s,textbooks“promot[ed]theneedforstudentstowritefrompersonal

experienceforauthenticpurposesandaudiences”(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.311).

Untilthe1970s,writinginstructionfocusedprimarilyona“sequenceof

essentialskills”(NationalWritingProject&Nagin,2003,p.19).Teachers

emphasized“inauthenticword‐andsentence‐level”instruction(Hawkins&Razali,

2012,p.311).Althoughthecornerstonesofwritingpedagogycenteredon

demonstratingknowledgeofgrammar,punctuation,andunderstandingthe

differencesbetweendistinctwritinggenres,anoticeableshiftbegantowardviewing

languageacquisitionfromaholisticperspective(Gebhardt,1977;Hawkins&Razali,

2012;NationalWritingProject&Nagin,2003).Asaresult,writinginstruction

becamemoreauthenticwithagoalofcommunicatingideas(Hawkins&Razali,

2012).Atthatpoint,expertsbegantoembracetheideathat“childrencouldonly

learntowritebywriting”(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.311).

Historically,masteryofwritingwasassessedthroughthelensofthefinal

product(Calkins,1986;Dreher,1990;NationalWritingProject&Nagin,2003;Perl,

Pekala,Schwartz,Graves&Silver,1983;Street&Stang,2009).Calkins(1986)

13

describedwritinginstructionduringthateducationaleraassomethingthat“was

assignedandthencorrected”(p.13).However,researchdemonstratedthat

presentingwritingskillsindependentlyfromactualpracticedoeslittle,ifanything,

tofosterwritingimprovement(NationalWritingProject&Nagin,2003).Bean

(2011)describedthisprescriptivemodeofinstructionas“view[ing]writingasaset

ofisolatedskillsunconnectedtoanauthenticdesiretoconversewithinterested

readersaboutrealideas”(p.17).Althoughwritingisobviouslyawaytoconvey

ideas,itisalsoatoolforthinking,understanding,andlearning(Daisey,2009;

Graves,2003;Murray,2003;NationalWritingProject&Nagin,2003;Street&Stang,

2009).

DevelopmentofProcessWriting

Theneedtocommunicateisabasichumandesire.AsearlyastheLascaux

cavepaintingsinFranceandEgyptianhieroglyphs,peoplesoughttoconvey

thoughts,feelings,andinformation.Childrenarenotexemptfromthiswishfortheir

ideastobeheard.Itisessentialforteacherstoincubatethisinnatedesireoftheir

students.AccordingtoGraves(1983):

Childrenwant towrite.Theywant towrite the firstday theyattendschool.Thisisnoaccident.Beforetheywenttoschooltheymarkedupwalls,pavements,newspaperswithcrayons,chalk,pensorpencils...anythingthatmakesamark.Thechild’smarkssay,“Iam.”(p.3).

Tofosterthatintrinsicwish,teachersmustnotonlycreateaclassroomenvironment

thatprovidesampleopportunitytoengageinwriting,butalsoonethatconveysa

senseofenthusiasmforwriting(Atwell,1998;Calkins,1986).

14

Untiltheearly1970s,teachingwritingrequiredstudentstoidentifyand

describethe“modesofdiscourse”(Calkins,1986,p.14).Historically,thesewere

distilledintothreeclassifications:“narration,persuasion,andinformation”

(Benjamin,2013,p.17).However,Calkins(1986)outlinedfourcategories:

“persuasive,expressive,referential,andliterarydiscourse”(p.14).Thistrend

evolvedasresearchersbegantoinvestigatethewaysinwhichstudentswrite–an

areathathadbeenlargelyignoreduntilthattime.Inanefforttounderstandthe

manysubtleelementsthatencompasstheactofwriting,researchersbeganto

examinehowstudentsapproachedthetask,ortheactualprocessofwriting(Atwell,

1998;Calkins,1986;Emig,1971;Graves,1983,1984;Nelms,1994;NCTE,2009;

Perl,Pekala,Schwartz,Graves&Silver,1983).Likewise,researchersalsobeganto

explorethewritingprocessutilizedbyprofessionalwritersinanattempttodiscern

whatbehaviorsdifferentiatetheskillsandhabitsofpublishedauthorsfromthose

employedbythenovice(Calkins,1986;Elbow,1998;Murray,2003;Street&Stang,

2009).AccordingtoStreetandStang(2009),therearetwounifyingprocessthreads

forprofessionalwriters:theyarepassionateaboutreadingandtheyrevisetheir

workwithregularity.However,regardlessoftheproficiencylevelortheprocess

used,bothbeginnersandadvancedwritershadoneunderlyingobjectiveinwriting

–thedevelopmentandcreationofthefinalwrittenproduct(Pritchard&Honeycutt,

2007).

Graves’(1983)observationsofchildrenwritingalongwithEmig’s(1971)

studiesoftwelfthgraders’compositionhabitshelpedshiftthefocusofwriting

15

pedagogyfromsingularskillinstructiontoanewformofprocessdiscourse.Itis

noteworthy,however,thatthisshiftbegantoemerge“aroundthetimethatANation

atRisksuggesteda‘back‐to‐basics’approach”wouldleadtoimprovedstudent

achievement(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.313).Theemphasistransitionedtoanin‐

depthexplorationofthemultipleeventsthatoccurduringtheprocessofwriting

ratherthanmerelythefinalpieceofwrittenwork(Tompkins,2004).Teachers

eagerlyembracedthisnewandpromisingapproach(NCTE,2009).Regardlessofthe

terminology,researchersidentifiedthreedistinctphasesofthewritingprocess:pre‐

writing,orwhathappensbeforestudentswrite;composing,theactofputting

thoughtsdownonpaperordigitallyasadraft;andfinally,post‐writing,orwhat

happensaftertheinitialwriting,orrevisionandediting(Calkins,1986;Graham,

MacArthur,&Fitzgerald,2007;Graves,1983,Tompkins,2004).

Perl,Pekala,Schwartz,Graves,andSilver(1983)explainedtheemergenceof

theprocessapproachasa“complexshiftinattitudes,behaviors,ideas,and

approaches”(p.21).Afterexaminingthiscomponentpartsofthismethod,these

researchersoutlinedsixbasicprinciplesaboutwritinginstruction(1)“experience”‐

studentslearnwritingbywriting;(2)“self‐observation”‐writersengageinself‐

analysisoftheirownwritingprocess;(3)“range”‐writersexperimentwithand

masternumerousgenres;(4)“collaboration”–givingandreceivingmeaningful

feedbackimproveswriting;(5)“audience”–writersmustunderstandandadaptthe

writingdependinguponwhoisreadingtheirworkand,(6)“authorship”–the

responsibilityforthewritingrestswiththewriter(Perl,Pekala,Schwartz,Graves&

16

Silver,1983,p.22).Thisprovedtobeasignificantshiftintheapproachtowriting

instruction.

Althoughthewritingprocesswasignoredhistorically,Murray(2003)argued

thatitisoneofthemostcriticalelements.Byexaminingtheprogressionofevents,

providingdirectinstruction,andmodelingtheprocessofwriting,ratherthan

merelyteachingisolatedskillsetsandgrammar,Graves(1983)opinedthatteachers

couldbetterassiststudentsinbecomingproficientwriters.Yet,thereisaunique

subsetoftasksin“theactofwriting(planning,drafting,revision,editing)”(National

WritingProject&Nagin,2003,p.22).Withintheprocessmodelofwriting,students

wererequiredtothink,reflect,andanalyzeastheymakedecisionsintheirwriting

processratherthanengaginginrotememorizationoftherulesofgrammar,spelling,

andpunctuation(Bean,2011;NationalWritingProject&Nagin,2003).Butthis

furthercomplicatedtheissue.InthewordsofresearcherDonaldGraves:

Thewritingprocessisanythingawriterdoesfromthetimetheideacameuntilthepieceiscompletedorabandoned.Thereisnoparticularorder.Soit’snoteffectivetoteachwritingprocessinalock‐step,rigidmanner . . . If you provide frequent occasions for writing, then thestudentsstarttothinkaboutwritingwhenthey’renotdoingit.Icallita state of constant composition (National Writing Project & Nagin,2003,p.23).

Buttheconceptofprocesshasevengreaterimplicationsthansimplyhow

oneapproachesthetask.Inaddition,thisperspectivebroughtanotionoffluidityto

thebeginningideasofapiecewhichthewritingprocesstransformsinto“more

coherent,complex,andclear”thoughtsthroughrevisions(Gebhardt,1977,p.137).

AccordingtoGebhardt(1977),processgivesstudentstheopportunityto

17

comprehendthatwritingisnota“staticthing”(p.137).Inotherwords,writing

unfoldsorganically.

Gallagher(2011)suggestedthatnotonlymuststudentshaveafundamental

understandingoftheprocessofwritingandengageinfrequentpractice,students

mustfullycomprehend“whytheyshouldwrite”(p.7).Withoutthisbasic

understanding,studentswillnotseewritingasameaningfulandworthwhile

activity(Daisey,2009;Gallagher,2011).Instead,theywillregardthetaskas

somethingunavoidableandonlyrequiredtopassacourse(Daisey,2009;Gallagher,

2011).Effectivewritingteacherssharenotonlytheprocessofwritingand

mechanics,butalsowhytheyvaluewriting(Augsburger,1998;Bloom,1990;

Cremin,2006;Gallagher,2011;Morgan,2010).

Writing–the“NeglectedR”

Today,thetriadofbasicskillstaughtinschoolisstillknownasthe3Rs–

reading,writing,andarithmetic.Whileattentionandresearchislavisheduponthe

twinpillarsofreadingandmathematics,writinginstructionhasbeenroutinely

ignoredand“hasbecometheneglectedelementofAmericanschoolreform”

(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.9).The1975,NewsweekMagazinecover

story,“WhyJohnnyCan’tWrite,”madethisdismalproclamationtoreaders(Sheils,

1975).Inthisarticle,professorsfromthenation’sIvyLeagueinstitutionsalong

withmajoremployerslamentedthemarginalwritingskillsdisplayedbyhighschool

18

andcollegegraduates(Sheils,1975).Despiteputtingthegrimstateofwritingof

highschoolgraduatesinthenationalspotlight,thewarningsremainedunheeded.

Twentyyearslater,MacDonald(1995)revisitedemployers’concernsabout

thelackofcompetentwritingskillsforstudents,graduatesofbothhighschooland

college,whowereenteringtheworkforce.Theauthorstatedthatwritinginstruction

wasespeciallysignificantintermsof“graduates’job‐readiness”(MacDonald,1995,

p.3).AccordingtoMacDonald(1995),althoughwritinginstructionhadtransformed

overtheyears,onesimplefactremained:teacherswerestill“nottalkingandwriting

about...howtoteachstudentstocomposeclear,logicalprose”(pp.3‐4,emphasis

inoriginal).Thiswastrueeventhoughdevelopingcompetentandconfidentwriters

has“alwaysbeenafundamentalaimofeducation”(NationalCommissionon

Writing,2003,p.13)

Afewyearslater,theNationalCommissiononWriting(2003)underscored

thecriticalvalueofthisthirdpillarinschools,bycallingwriting“anoverlookedkey

totransforminglearningintheUnitedStates”(p.13).TheCommissionconcluded:

Writing isnot simplyaway for students todemonstratewhat theyknow.Itisawaytohelpthemunderstandwhattheyknow.Atitsbest,writingislearning...Asanation,wecanbarelybegintoimaginehowpowerfulK–16educationmightbeifwritingwereputinitsproperfocus. Facility with writing opens students up to the pleasure ofexercising their minds in ways that drilling on facts, details, andinformationneverwill.Morethanawayofknowing,writingisanactofdiscovery(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,pp.13‐14).TheNoChildLeftBehindAct(NCLB)of2001,whichofferedthepromiseof

everychildtestingatgradelevelinreadingandmathby2014,providedlittlein

termsofmeetingthestatedobjectives(Garcia&Thornton,2015).Despitethese

19

grandandwide‐sweepingpromisesofeducationalreformandachievement,NCLB

simplydidnotdeliver.Moreover,NCLBvirtuallyignoredwritingachievement

(Colby&Stapleton,2006).TheimpactofthemorerecentlyadoptedCommonCore

StateStandards(CCSS),whichplacesarenewedemphasisonwritingthroughout

thegradelevelsandacrossthecurriculum,remainstobeseen.However,onething

iscertain:writingproficiencynolongerremainsintheshadows.

NotonlydidtheNationalCommissiononWriting(2003)reportsoundthe

alarmonthedismalstateofwritingperformance,itoutlinedfourspecificchallenges

toimprovewritinginstructionandstudentachievement.First,allottingadequate

timeforwritinginstructionwasdeemedparamount(NationalCommissionon

Writing,2003).Thereportnotedthatdevelopingthoughtsonpaper,findinga

writingvoice,andunderstandingthedifferencesinaudienceareconceptsthatneed

timetodevelopandpractice(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.20).

Accordingtothisreport,“theseskillscannotbepickedupfromafewminuteshere,

andfewminutesthere,allstolenfrommore‘important’subjects”(National

CommissiononWriting,2003,p.20).Simplystated,writingcannotbeeffectively

taughtorlearnedinapiecemealfashion.

Next,theNationalCommissiononWriting(2003)reportstatedthatcareful

evaluationofwritingisessential,but“agenuinechallenge”existsduetobothtime

constraintsandthecomplexityofwritingassessment(NationalCommissionon

Writing,2003,p.21).ApositionstatementbyTheNationalCouncilofTeachersof

English(2002)indicatedthatonepieceofworksimplycannotpaintanaccurateand

20

completepictureofwritingproficiency.Thischallengerelatedbacktotheissueof

time,bothforstudentstomovethroughtheprocessof“plan[ning],produc[ing],

revis[ing],andedit[ing]asinglepieceofwrittenwork”andforteacherstoassess

thefinalproduct(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.22).

Giventhedisparityofevaluationutilizedbydistrictsacrossthecountry

coupledwiththesubtlelayersofintricacyofwritingassessment,itwasnosurprise

thattheNCWreportdeemed“writingassessment[is]agenuinechallenge”

(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.21).Anotherconcernarisesfromthe

taskofevaluatingwriting–whatmakesapieceofwriting“good?”Writingexperts

suchasAtwell(1998),Calkins(1994),andSpandel(2009)haveofferedguidance.

The“6+1Traits”model,developedbySpandel(2009),provideda“research‐tested”

definitionofgoodwriting(Nauman,Stirling,&Borthwick,2011,p.318).Spandel

(2009)statedthatwritingassessmentismosteffectivelyconsideredthroughthe

lensofsixtraits:ideas,organization,wordchoice,sentencefluency,voice,and

conventions.Thisprovidedaclearframeworkforevaluatingstudentwriting.

PriortoSpandel(2009),thenotionofwhatconstituted“good”writingwas

readilyunderstood,yetnoteasilydefined.Mosteducatorscouldidentifyastrong

pieceofstudentwriting,buttheycouldnotnecessarilyexplain“why”itwasgoodin

thesameway(Spandel,2009).ThankstotheworkofSpandel(2009),teachersand

studentsarenowabletosharethiscommonlanguage,whichhasproventobea

significantcontribution.

21

Next,thethirdchallengeistechnologyasitrelatestowritinginstruction.The

NationalCommissiononWritingreportoutlinedthepositiverolethattechnology

hasplayedinwriting,suggestingthatitistransformativeinhowstudentsare

“generating,organizing,andeditingtext”(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.

22).Inaddition,thereportnotedthatstudentstodayarecomfortablewithsuch

technologicalwaysofproducingideasandtextandare“eagertousethem”

(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003,p.21).Thechallenge,accordingtothe

report,liesinmakingsurethesetechnologicalresourcesandadequatetrainingin

howtousethemarewidelyavailableanddistributedequitably(National

CommissiononWriting,2003).

Finally,thepredominantthemerelatestounderlyingchallengesofteaching

writing(NationalCommissiononWriting,2003).TheNationalCommissiononWriting

(2003)reportnotedthedistressingconcernthat“teacherstypicallyreceivelittle

instructioninhowtoteachwriting”(p.23).Specifically,thereportstated:

Nomatter how hard theywork, these instructors, lacking any realunderstanding of what good writing is or looks like, are often illequipped to teach it. Part of the difficulty is the pre‐and in‐serviceteacher professional development rarely offers teachers anopportunitytoseethemselvesaswriters–toexperiencethepowerandsatisfactionofwritingasameansoflearningandself‐expression.. . Writing is a prisoner of time in the preparation and continuingprofessional development of teachers (National Commission onWriting,2003,p.23).

AlthoughtheNationalCommissiononWriting(2003)reportoffered

constructivesuggestionsforreform,resultsofthe2011NationalAssessmentof

EducationalProgress(NAEP)atGrades8and12(2012)offeredlittle

22

encouragementthatprogresshasbeenmadeinlevelsofwritingproficiencyinU.S.

schools.TheNAEP(2012)assessmentwasadministeredusingtechnology,which

offeredauniqueglimpseintohowstudentsutilizecomputersintheprocessof

writing(NationalCenteronEducationStatistics,2012)The2011NAEPreport

defined“basic”as“partialmasteryofprerequisiteknowledgeandskillsthatare

fundamentalforproficientworkateachgrade”(NationalCenterforEducation

Statistics,2012,p.7).Thereportdefined“proficient”assolidacademic

performance”andstated“[s]tudentsreachingthislevelhavedemonstrated

competencyoverchallengingsubjectmatter”(NationalCenterforEducation

Statistics,2012,p.7).Ingrades8and12,only24%ofstudentswereproficientin

writingand3%wereadvanced(NationalCenterforEducationStatistics,2012,p.1).

Nearly75%ofstudentsatthesegradelevelsareateitherbasicorbelowwriting

abilities(NationalCenterforEducationStatistics,2012,p.1).

WritingInstructioninTeacherEducationPrograms

Thevastmajorityofpreserviceteachersreceivemoretraininginreading

principlesandpedagogythaninwritinginstruction(Hall&Grisham‐Brown,2014;

Norman&Spencer,2005).Teachereducationprogramsthroughoutthecountry

varydramatically,notonlyintheamountofwritingrequiredofpreserviceteachers,

butintherequirementofastandalonecourseinwritingtheoryandpractice

(Chambless&Bass,2010;Daisey,2009;Tulley2013).Mosttrainingprogramsdo

23

notrequireawritingcourseforgraduation,nordoteachercertificationstendto

requireit(Norman&Spencer,2005).

However,theresearchisunequivocal:theonlywaytoimprovewritingskills

atanylevelisthroughwritingregularly(Colby&Stapleton,2006).Thisshould

comeasnosurprisesincethetaskoflearningtowriterequiresbeingactively

engagedintheprocessofwriting(Bratcher&Stroble,1994;Colby&Stapleton,

2006;Shofel,1991).However,tobeaneffectivewritingteacherdemandsmore.

AccordingtoMorgan(2010),teachersmustbeinvolvedinthewritingprocessto

fullyunderstandandexperiencethedifficultiesoftheprocess,aswellasthe

pleasurewritingcanbring.Simplystated,inordertoteachwritingeffectively,

teachersmustbewritersthemselves(Bratcher&Stroble,1994;Colby&Stapleton,

2006,Morgan,2010;NationalCommissiononWriting&Nagin,2003;Street,2003,

Street&Stang,2009).

Writingteachersmustwritesotheycanhelpstudentsunderstandnotonly

theprocess,butthechallengesandstruggles(Augsburger,1998).Further,

Augsburger(1998)arguedthatwritingisan“intimateandintimidatingtask”that

includesanunderlyingelementoffear(p.549).AccordingtoGebhardt(1977),“the

importanceofpositiveinstructionbyteachersexperiencedintheagoniesoftryingto

write”(p.137,emphasisGebhardt’s).Inotherwords,teacherscannotprovide

effectivewritinginstructionunlesstheyarewritersthemselvesandhave

experiencedtheinherentstrugglesandfears.Murray(2003)echoedthese

sentiments:

24

Teachersshouldwritesotheyunderstandtheprocessofwritingfromwithin.Theyshouldknowtheterritoryintellectuallyandemotionally:howyouhavetothinktowriter,howyoufeelwhenwriting.Teachersof writing do not have to be great writers, but they should havefrequentand recentexperience inwriting . . . If youexperience thedespair, the joy, the failure, the success, the work, the fun, thedrudgery,thesurpriseofwritingyouwillbeabletounderstandthecomposing experiences of your students and therefore help themunderstandhowtheyarelearningtowrite”(p.74).

Onlybyexperiencingtheups‐and‐downsofthewritingprocessfirst‐

handcanteachersfullycomprehendandempathizewiththestruggles,

frustrations,andjoysoftheirstudents(Augsburger,1998;Bloom,

1990;Morgan,2010).

Moreover,Smith(1983)opinedthatteachersmustviewthemselvesas

writersandlikenedtheprocessofteachingthiscomplexsubjecttobeingadmitted

toaclub.AccordingtoSmith(1983):

Thefirstresponsibilityofteachersistoshowchildrenthatwritingisinteresting, possible, and worthwhile. But there is also no way ofhelping children to write if the teacher does not think writing isinteresting,possible,andworthwhile.Teacherswhoarenotmembersoftheclubcannotadmitchildrentotheclub.(p.566).

Inaddition,Smith(1983)suggestedthatas“membersoftheclub,”teacherswill

haveexperiencedthe“emotionalconcomitantsofwritinganditsblocks”(p.564).

Smith’s(1983)viewssquaredirectlywithAugsburger(1998),Bloom(1990),and

Morgan(2010)whoarguethatitisdifficult,ifnotimpossible,tosharethiscritical

underlyingknowledgeoftheprocessofwritingunlessithasbeenexperiencedfirst‐

hand.

25

Althoughwritinginstructionlacksacohesiveapproachoverallinteacher

training,thebestpracticesinteachingwritingareclear.Inonemeta‐analysisforthe

CarnegieCorporationofNewYork,abroadspectrumofmethodsofwriting

instructionwereexaminedinthecontextofmiddleschoolinstruction(Graham&

Perin,2007).GrahamandPerin(2007)identifiedthetenbestpracticesofeffective

writinginstructionas(1)timespentonwritinginstruction,(2)useofdifferent

formsofwriting,(3)teachingthefullspectrumofwritingprocess,(4)engaging

students,(5)utilizingdifferentmethodsofclassroominstruction(wholeclass,small

groups,etc.),(6)utilizingmodelingtechniques,(7)offeringsupport,(8)enthusiasm

forwriting,(9)havinghighstudentexpectations,and(10)adaptingassignmentsto

meetstudentneeds.Whileschoolreformeffortsovertheyearshaveplaceda

brighterspotlightontheneedforimprovedwritinginstructionintheK–12

classroom,theseimplicationshavenotfilteredintoteachereducationprograms.

Manyteachersinthefieldexpressconcernsthattheiruniversitytrainingdid

notpreparethemforwritinginstruction(Chambless&Bass,1995;Daisey,2009;

Martin&Dismuke,2015;Morgan,2010;Tulley2013).Arguably,thisisadirect

resultofthelackofemphasisonwritingpedagogyinteachertraining(Hall&

Grisham‐Brown,2014).Sincetheamountofattentiongiventowritinginteacher

trainingprogramsvariessowidely,theperceptionthatnewteachersfeel

unpreparedorunder‐preparedtoteachwritingisnotsurprising(Daisey,2009;

Tulley,2013).Consideringmostinstitutionsprovidewritingpedagogywithina

reading‐intensivemethodscourse,learningopportunitiesarelimitedforwriting

26

(Martin&Dismuke,2015;Morgan,2010).ThedevelopmentoftheNationalWriting

Projectsitesthroughoutthecountryonlyservestobuttresstheassertionthat

teachertrainingprogramsdonotprovidesufficientinstructioninwritingnor

writingpracticetodevelopcompetentandconfidentteachersofwriting.

TheNationalWritingProject:AddressingtheConcerns

ThedevelopmentandevolutionoftheNationalWritingProjectoffers

compellingevidencethatteachereducationprogramsaremissingthemarkwhenit

comestopreparingfuturewritingteachers.In1974,JamesGrayfoundedtheBay

AreaWritingProjectattheUniversityofCalifornia,Berkeleyfor25teacherswho

wereinterestedinimprovingwritinginstruction(Whitney&Friedrich,2013;

Whyte,Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse&Talbot,2007).TheNationalWriting

Projecthasgrownfromthismodestbeginningtoafederallyfundedorganization

withnearly200university‐basedlocationsinall50statesthatservesteachersfrom

pre‐schooltocollege(NationalWritingProject,2015;Whitney&Friedrich,2013;

Whyte,Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse&Talbot,2007).Teachersvoluntarily

participateina4‐to‐5weekintensiveprofessionaldevelopmentworkshopwhich

hasthreecomponents:writingeachday,workshoppingtheirownwrittenwork,and

publication(Whyte,Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse&Talbot,2007).After

completingtheinitialphase,participantsaretheneligibletoparticipateinother

NationalWritingProjectworkshops(Whyte,Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse&

Talbot,2007).

27

TheNationalWritingProject’smissionistofocuson“theknowledge,

expertise,andleadershipofournation’seducatorsonsustainedeffortstoimprove

writingandlearningforalllearners”(NationalWritingProject,2015).TheNational

WritingProjectfocusesonfive“coreprinciples”toimprovewriting:

1. WritingshouldnotonlybeassignedbutalsotaughtK‐16,

2. Althoughthereisnoonerightapproachtotheteachingofwriting,some

practices are more effective than others; a research‐informed

community of practice is positioned well to design and develop

comprehensivewritingprograms,

3. To develop professionally, teachers need frequent opportunities to

systematicallyexamineresearchandpractice,

4. TeachersK‐16aretheidealagentsofreform,andschoolsanduniversitiesare

theidealpartnersforinvestingtogetherinthatreform,

5. Teachers of writing must write (National Writing Project, 2015; Whyte,

Lazarte,Thompson,Ellis,Muse&Talbot,2007).

Throughsustained,thoughtful,andresearch‐basedprofessionaldevelopmentfor

educatorsinP‐20,theNationalWritingProjectbelievesitcanachievethegoalof

everyonebeing“anaccomplishedwriter,anengagedlearner,andanactive

participantinadigital,interconnectedworld”(NationalWritingProject,2015).

Whiletheseareloftygoalstobesure,theneedforcompetentandconfidentwriters

inthe21stcenturymandatesthateducatorsferventlypursueit.

28

TheUniqueSocializationofTeachers

AccordingtoLortie(1975),individualsareinductedandpreparedforentry

intocareerpathsthroughvariouscombinationsofeducationandexperience.

Teachingrequiresbothgeneralschoolingandthe“apprenticeshipofobservation”

(Lortie,1975,p.61).Unlikeothercareerpaths,suchasthemedicalprofessionthat

requiressignificantshadowingofothercurrentpractitionersintheprofession,

studentswhobecometeachershavebeenactivelyengagedwitheducatorsduring

theiracademiccareers.

Thosewhoteachhavenormallyhadsixteencontinuousyearsofcontactwithteachersandprofessors.Americanyoungpeopleinfact,seeteachersatworkmuchmorethantheyseeanyotheroccupationalgroup; we can estimate that the average student has spent 13,000hours in direct contact with classroom teachers by the time hegraduatesfromhighschool...Theinteraction,moreover,isnotpassiveobservation‐itisusuallyarelationshipwhichhasconsequencesforthestudentandthusisinvestedwithaffect.(Lortie,1975,p.61).

Consequently,teachersthroughoutstudents’academiccareershavean

enormousamountofinfluence,eitherdirectlyorindirectly,onteacher

candidates.Toastrongdegree,theirinfluences,bothnegativeandpositive,

willlargelyshapehowteachercandidatesapproachsubjectsintheirown

classroom.

29

SituatedLearning

LaveandWenger’s(1991)situatedlearningprovidesahelpfulframework

andcontextforunderstandingwritinginstruction.Unlikeanyotherprofession,the

choicetobecomeateacherbringswithitroughly12yearsofacademicexperience

withpasteducators.Whetherornotstudentsareaware,theyhavebeenengagedin

the“apprenticeshipofobservation”oftheprofessionoverthelifespanoftheir

schoolcareer(Lortie,1975,p.1).Thisinfluence,bothdirectandindirect,playsakey

roleintheattitudesandbeliefsstudentsholdaboutparticularsubjectsandlearning

aswellasthewaytheywillultimatelyapproachteachingit.Ofcourse,theeffects

mayhavebeenpositive,negative,orsomecombinationofthetwo.

LaveandWenger(1991)offeredadifferentperspectiveonthenotion

ofapprenticeshipswhichhasbeenapartoflearning,bothhistoricallyandin

contemporarysociety(p.63).Learning,asasocialpractice,isapartofall

activities(Lave&Wenger,1991).Althoughlearningoccursregarding

“specificactivities,”italsorelatesto“socialcommunities”(Lave&Wenger,

1991,p.53).

Byparticipatinginlearningexperiences,studentsmasterknowledge

andjoincommunitiesofpracticethroughaprocessknownas“legitimate

peripheralparticipation”(LPP)(Lave&Wenger,1991,p.29).LLPdescribed

thewaythatnewmembersofthegroupinteractwithestablished

practitioners(Lave&Wenger,1991).Participationis“basedonsituated

negotiationandrenegotiationofmeaningintheworld”(Lave&Wenger,

30

1991,p.51).Inaddition,LLPexplainedhownewparticipantsbecomefully

integratedintothecommunityofpracticeandacquirenewknowledge(Lave

&Wenger,1991).

LaveandWenger’s(1991)notionsofsituatedlearningconflatewith

Lortie’s(1975)observationsofateachercandidates’apprenticeshipwithin

theprofession.Preserviceteachershavedirectlyobservedteachersintheir

pastclassroomexperiences.Regardlessofthesubjectarea,students

experiencedasubtle,nuancedinteractionatplayduringinstruction.

Studentsintheclassroomwereunwittinglylearninghowteachersteach.

Lortie(1975)firstexplainedthenotionofthe“apprenticeshipof

observation”asawayoflearninghowtoteach(p.61).Likewise,Laveand

Wenger(1991)laterobservedthat“participation[is]awayoflearning–of

bothabsorbingandbeingabsorbedin–the‘cultureofpractice’’’(p.95,

emphasisLave&Wenger’s).

Inthecontextofwritinginstruction,thisapprenticeshipandcommunityof

practice,knowinglyorunknowingly,invitesstudentstoassimilatetheirmentors’

attitudesandbeliefs(Lave&Wenger,1991,Lortie,1975).Teachers’attitudesand

beliefsaboutwritingplayadistinctroleinthedevelopmentofhowastudentfeels

abouttheprocessandpracticeofthecraft(Brooks,2007;Graves,1990;Daisey,

2009;Street&Stang,2009).Thesecollectiveexperiences,whichmayhavebeen

positive,negative,orindifferent,ultimatelyshapeapreserviceteacher’sthoughts

aboutwriting(Hall&Grisham‐Brown,2014).AsGreenleaf,Jimenez,&Roller(2002)

31

soaptlystated:“teachersdon’tjustappearoutofthinair.Theyaretheproducts–as

wellasactiveagents–oftheworldsfromwhichtheycame”(p.487).

Whenstudentsentertheuniversity,theattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting

thatwereformedthroughouttheiracademiccareersfollowthem(Florio‐Ruane&

Lensmire,1990;Lortie,1975).Theywillhaveadirectimpactonhowfuture

teachersapproachwritinginstruction(Dart,Bouton‐Lewis,Brownless,&McCrindle,

1998;Whitney&Friedrich,2013).Thesethoughtswillbeapartofevery

instructionaldecision(Lortie,1975).

RoleofAttitudeinWriting

Throughthiscommunityofpractice,asdescribedbybothLortie(1975)and

LaveandWenger(1991),preserviceteachersnecessarilyassimilatetheirmentors’

attitudesaboutclassroomsubjects.Teachers’attitudestowardwritingplayakey

roleindevelopingachild’sattitudesaboutreadingandwriting(Brooks,2007;

Graves,1994;Daisey,2009,Street&Stang,2009).AccordingtoBrooks(2007),

“studentsaremorelikelytobecomesuccessful,enthusiastic,andengagedreaders

andwriterswhentheylearnfromandareamongteacherswhodisplaythesame

traits”(p.177).Notonlydoeseffectivewritinginstructionrequireathorough

knowledgeofEnglishlanguageconventions,itdemandsconfidentteachers

(Graham,Harris,Fink,&MacArthur,2001).Ifteachersaretoserveasmentorsinthe

writingprocess,itfollowsthattheymustbecomfortableinthisrole(Everson,

32

1991).Consequently,theattitudesandbeliefsthatwillultimatelyguideandshape

theconfidencelevelsoffutureteachersareworthyofin‐depthexamination.

DevelopmentofWritingAttitudesandBeliefs

Asstudentsentertheuniversitysetting,theybringwiththemroughly

eighteenyearsoflifeexperiencesthatmoldedandshapedtheiracademicself‐

conceptandself‐efficacybeliefs(Lortie,1975;Parajes,2003;Rosen,Glennie,Dalton,

Lennon,&Bozick,2010;Shofel,1991).Althoughstudentsmaylacksophisticationin

theirunderstanding,theyalsograspbasicconceptsofteachingandlearningbased

ontheirpriorschoolexperience(Dart,Bouton‐Lewis,Brownlee&McCrindle,1998;

Lave&Wenger,1991;Lortie,1975;Martin&Dismuke,2015;Parajes,2003).Martin

andDismuke(2015)suggestedthatthesepreviousexperiencescancreateunique

challengesforteachereducatorsinthattheattitudesandbeliefsstudentsbringto

theirprogramsmaybedeeplyembedded.Greenleaf,Jimenez,andRoller(2002)

stateditsuccinctly:“teachersdon’tjustappearoutofthinair.Theyareproducts–as

wellasactiveagents–oftheworldsfromwhichtheycame”(p.487).Regardless

whenorhowtheseattitudesandbeliefswereformed,thetotalityoftheseprior

experiences,nonetheless,mergestoformthecurrentbeliefsthatpreservice

teacherswillcarryintotheirfutureclassrooms(Morgan,2010;Street,2003;Street

&Stang,2009).

NormanandSpencer(2005)examinedresponsesfrom59preservice

teachersregardingindividualswhoplayedaroleinthedevelopmentoftheir

33

identityaswriters.Inthisstudy,80%statedthatteachershadthegreatestinfluence

(Norman&Spencer,2005).Outofthatgroup,theoverwhelmingmajorityfoundan

elementaryteachertohavethemostpowerfulimpactonhisorherwritingability

andconfidence(Norman&Spencer,2005).Respondentsdescribedtheirteachersas

“enthusiastic,supportive,andencouraging”(Norman&Spencer,2005,p.30).

Providingopportunitiesforindividualchoiceofrelevantandmeaningfulwriting

topicsandjournalwritingwerecitedbystudentsasinfluential(Norman&Spencer,

2005).Incontrast,teacherswhofocusedon“conventionsratherthancontent”hada

negativeimpactonattitudes(Norman&Spencer,2005,p.31).

Likewise,feedbackfromteachersplayedadistinctroleinattitude

development(Norman&Spencer,2005).However,theperceptionsoffeedback

depended,inpart,uponastudent’smindsetaboutwriting.NormanandSpencer

(2005)foundthatstudentswhoconsideredwritinganinnateabilitydidnotview

“correctivefeedbackinapositivelight”(p.34).Incontrast,NormanandSpencer

(2005)foundthatstudentswhoperceivedwritingabilityasflexiblebelieved

feedbackandencouragementfromtheirprofessorhelpedthemimprovetheir

writingskills.ThisfindingisconsistentwithDweck’s(2006)notionofgrowth

mindset.

StreetandStang(2009)examinedthedevelopmentofself‐confidencein

writingof25teachersinthefield.Anoverwhelmingmajority,80%,indicatedthat

priorteachersandschoolexperienceshadadirectimpactoftheirviewofself‐as‐

writer(Street&Stang,2009).Notably,theexperiencesoftheteacherswholacked

34

self‐confidencereflectedrecollectionsof“criticism,harshness,andresentment”

(Street&Stang,2009,p.84).Theresearchersfoundthesenegativeexperienceshad

a“lastingeffect”thatcontinuedintoadulthood(Street&Stang,2009,p.85).Street&

Stang(2009)statedthatthe“collectiveexperienceswithschool‐basedwritingand

thedisturbingconsistencyamongtheparticipantsregardingtheirnegativeschool

memoriescannotgounstated”(p.85).Consequently,teachereducatorsmust

acknowledgeandhaveanawarenessoftheexperiencesthatshapetheattitudesand

beliefspreserviceteachersbringtotheirprograms.

RoleofSelf‐EfficacyinAttitudesandBeliefsaboutWriting

Self‐efficacyisthebeliefsystemthatanindividualperceivesastrue

regardinghisorherabilitytonavigateaparticulartask(Pajares,2003;Zimmerman,

Morgan&Kidder‐Brown2014).AccordingtoSchunk(2012),self‐efficacyisdefined

as“personalbeliefsaboutone’scapabilitiestolearnorperformactionsata

designatedlevel”(p.146).Beswick(2006)explainedthatbeliefsare“anythinga

personregardsastrue”(p.37).Bandura(1977)statedthatself‐efficacybeliefscan

predictbehavior.Incontrast,attitudesare“apositiveornegativeassessmentofa

psychologicalobject”(Beswick,2006,p.37).Althoughattitudesarisefrombeliefs,

thereis“notaone‐to‐onecorrespondencebetween”them(Beswick,2006,p.37).

Whilebeliefsareformedoveraperiodoftimeandastheamalgamofa

myriadofexperiences,theyareultimatelyresponsibleforhowwellanindividual

believesheorshewillbeabletocompleteagiventask(Bandura,1977;Fishbein&

35

Ajzen,1975;Zimmerman,Morgan&Kidder‐Brown,2014).Self‐efficacyspecifically

referstothebeliefsorperceptionsregardingthecapabilitytocompleteataskrather

thanhavingtheskillstocorrectlydoso(Fishbein&Ajzen,1975;Schunk,2012).The

levelofskillisirrelevantintermsofself‐efficacy;incontrast,whatisrelevantisthe

beliefregardingthecapability(Bandura,1997;Fishbein&Ajzen,1975).Notably,

self‐efficacyisnotconsistentacrossaspectrumoftasks(Zimmerman,Morgan,&

Kidder‐Brown,2014).Instead,self‐efficacybeliefsare“taskspecificandcontextual

inthatone’sself‐efficacycanvaryacrossthevarietyoftasksandcircumstancesthey

mayencounter”(Zimmerman,Morgan,&Kidder‐Brown,2014,p.143).Forexample,

astudentmayconsiderreadingandwritingeasy,butbelievesheisnotstrongin

math.Likewise,astudentmayfeelconfidentinmathandscience,yetbelievehis

writingskillsarepoor.

Informationaboutaperson’sself‐efficacybeliefscanbediscernedfromfour

sources(Parajes,2003).AccordingtoParajes(2003),themostimportantsourceis

fromthe“interpretedresultofone’sperformance,ormasteryexperience(p.140).

Successfullycompletingataskincreasesself‐efficacy,whilefailingtomasteratask

maydiminishit(Parajes,2003).Thenextfactorwhichexertsastronginfluenceon

beliefsisobservingothersperformingataskwhichallowsfor“social

comparisons”(Parajes,2003,p.140).Inaddition,verbalfeedbackandsocialcues

providebothpositiveandnegativefeedbackwhichcanimpactattitudesandbeliefs

(Parajes,2003).Finally,thephysicalstateoftheindividual,suchasbeinganxious

aboutperformance,canshapebeliefs(Parajes,2003).

36

AccordingtoLavelle(2006),thereisadirectcorrelationbetweenastudent’s

self‐efficacyandfeelingsaboutwriting.Withhigherlevelsofself‐efficacy,writers

aremorelikelytopersist(Bandura,1977;Brindley&Schneider,2002;Lavelle,

2006).Self‐efficacyis“aparticularlypowerfulconstruct,asitisoneofthefew

teachercharacteristicsthatreliablypredictsteacherpracticeandstudentoutcomes”

(Graham,Harris,Fink&MacArthur,2009,p.205).StreetandStang(2009)stated

that“teachers’histories“playanimportantroleintheirability–orinability–touse

writingwiththeirstudents”(p.91).

Whileathoroughunderstandingoftheintricaciesandconventionsofthe

Englishlanguageisessentialforwritingteachers,alevelofself‐confidenceiscritical

tothemannerinwhichwritingwillbetaught(Graham,Harris,Fink&MacArthur,

2001;Lavelle,2009).Althoughasmallnumberofstudiesexploredself‐efficacyin

thecontextofmathandsciencecoursesforpreserviceteachers,theintersectionof

self‐efficacybeliefsandwritinghasbeenlargelyoverlookedbyresearchersin

teachereducation(Graham,Harris,Fink,&MacArthur,2001).Likewise,aneven

smallernumberofstudieshaveexaminedteacherperceptionsabouttheirown

writingability(Lavelle,2009).

PreserviceTeachers’AttitudesandBeliefsaboutWriting

Teacherattitudesplayaroleineveryfacetofthecurriculum.Infact,teacher

attitudesandbeliefsaboutsubjectmatterpervadeallareasofdecisionregarding

classroompracticesandpedagogy(Dart,Bouton‐Lewis,Brownlee&McCrindle,

37

1998).AccordingtoDart,Bouton‐Lewis,etal(1998)teacherattitudeshaveadirect

impactonclassroompracticesandteachingpedagogy.McCartheyandMkhize

(2013)statedthattheseattitudesinfluenceateacher’sapproachtowriting

instruction.StreetandStang(2009)agreedthatateacher’sbackgroundand

experiencewithwritingwillplayasignificantroleinhisorherapproachto

teaching.Someofthesebeliefswillhaveapositiveinfluencewhileothersmay

presentobstaclestoteachingandlearning.Inadditiontobackground,thelevelof

“relationaltrust”fosteredbytheteacherwillhaveacriticalimpactonstudent

performance(Palmer,2007,p.28).

Researchdemonstratesthatinordertoteachwritingeffectively,teachers

mustbewritersthemselves(Draper,Barksdale‐Ladd,&Radencich,2000;

Hollingsworth,1988).Draper,Barksdale‐Ladd,andRadencich(2000)cautioned

teachereducatorstoavoidtheassumptionthatpreserviceteachersactuallywriteor

enjoywriting.Further,theseresearchersemphaticallystated:“wedonotbelieve

thatteacherswhodislikereadingandwritingcaneffectivelyfostertheloveof

readingandwritinginthechildrentheyteach”(Draper,Barksdale‐Ladd,&

Radencich,2000,p.187.)

InNormanandSpencer’s(2005)study,91%ofthepreserviceteachers

viewedwritingasatraitthatwas“classifiedaseitherfixed–writingisagiftof

talentoneeitherhasordoesn’thave–ormalleable–writingisacraftthatcanbe

improvedwithinstructionandcorrectivefeedback”(p.34).Thisalignswith

Dweck’s(2006)viewsonfixedandgrowthmindset.

38

Street(2003)examinedhowpre‐serviceteachers’attitudesaboutwriting

influencehowtheyteachwriting.Self‐confidenceinwritingisabsolutelycritical

(Street,2003).Self‐confidence,orlackthereof,informsthechoiceofactivities,level

ofeffortdemonstrated,andpersistencewithchallengingtasks(p.34‐35).According

toStreet(2003),understandingateacher’slevelofself‐confidenceinwritingis

essentialinfosteringimprovementinbothwritingandinstruction.

Studentswhoseattitudesandbeliefswereshapedbysuccessfulexperiences

withwritingwillgenerallyhavemorepositiveattitudestowardwriting(Chambless

&Bass,1995;Colby&Stapleton,2006).Thisconfidenceinwritingwillinformthe

approachtowritinginstruction(Colby&Stapleton,2006,p.354).Tobecome

confidentandeffectivewriters,teachersmustbecomecomfortablewiththeconcept

ofwriting,theprocessofwriting,andbewritersthemselves(Bratcher&Stroble,

1994).

However,notallstudentshavehadpositiveexperienceswithwriting.This

willbereflectedinstudents’attitudesandbeliefs.Accordingly,teachereducation

programsmustbepreparedtoaddressstudentswithvariedwritingabilitiesand

attitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting.Teachertrainingprogramsmustrecognizethat

students’pastexperiencewithwritingdramaticallyinfluenceshowtheywill

approachwritinginstruction(Street&Stang,2009).Street(2003)statedthat

writingattitudescanbechangedbycoursesthatfosterpositiveexperiencesand

outcomeswithwriting.

39

ChapterSummary

Preserviceteachersbringanamalgamofexperiences,bothpositiveand

negative,thatcollectivelyshapetheirattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting(Hall&

Grisham‐Brown,2014).Sincethiswillformtheunderlyingapproachtoinstruction,

itisessentialforpreserviceteacherstoacknowledgethese“deeplyheld

assumptions”aboutwriting(Draper,Barksdale‐Ladd,&Radencich,2000,p.187).

Thisisespeciallycriticalsincetheseattitudesandbeliefswillplayadirectrolein

thewaythesepreserviceteachersvaluewritinginstructionandapproachpedagogy

intheirfutureclassrooms(Hall&Grisham‐Brown,2011).HallandGrisham‐Brown

(2011)statedthatthesebeliefsarenotnecessarilystaticandfixed.Asaresult,

throughguidanceinteachereducationprograms,theseattitudesandbeliefsmaybe

changedovertimeintonew,morepositiveattitudesaboutwriting(Hall&Grisham‐

Brown,2011).

HawkinsandRazali(2012)statedthatourwritinghistory“influencesnot

onlythepractice[ofwriting]itself,butthewaysinwhichweeachengagewithand

enactthesepracticesinourclassrooms”(p.305).Byexaminingone’shistorywith

writing,preserviceteachersareableto“stepbackandsee[themselves]and[their]

teachingasresidingwithinalargerstory(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.305).Norman

andSpencer(2005)agreedthatself‐examinationiscriticaltotheprocessof

understandingcurrentattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting,butalsotochangethe

trajectoryoffutureones.Infact,thiselementofreflectionispromisingforteacher

educationprogramstofosteracultureofchangeinbeliefsandattitudesabout

40

writing(Norman&Spencer,2005).StangandStreet(2011)contendedthatthese

writinghistories“provideaplaceforteacherstogrow”(p.40).Thisfurther

underscoresnotonlythecriticalrolethatwritinghistoriesplayinstudentattitudes

andbeliefs,butintheimpactthatteachereducationprogramscanhaveinreshaping

them.

41

CHAPTERTHREE‐METHODOLOGY

Basically,ifyouwanttobecomeagoodwriteryouneedtodothreethings.Readalot,listenwellanddeeply,andwritealot(Goldberg,1986,pp.53‐54)

Thisqualitativestudyexaminedthewritingattitudesandbeliefsofseven

preserviceteachers.Thepurposeofthisstudywastounderstandhowpreservice

teachersviewandpracticethewritingprocess,toidentifythoseexperiencesthat

shapedthoseattitudesandbeliefs,andtounderstandhowtheirviewsoftheprocess

informtheirthinkingaboutteachingwriting.

Thisstudytookplaceduringonesemesterinawriting‐intensiveEnglish

LanguageArts(ELA)coursepriortoparticipants’studentteachingexperience.To

exploreandunderstandthefactorsthatshapedtheparticipants’attitudesand

beliefsaboutwriting,multiplesourcesofdatawerecollectedincluding,pre‐and

post‐courseWritingApprehensionTest(WAT)scores,aquestionnaire,twoin‐depth

semi‐structuredinterviews,afocusgroup,classobservations,journalsentries,GPA,

ACTorSATscores,WRIT101grades,andworksamples.

Aqualitativeapproachwasusedbecausethisallowsforan“interpretive

naturalisticapproachtotheworld”(Denzin&Lincoln,2008,p.4).Patton(2002)

explainedqualitativeresearchgivesa“holisticperspective”totheproblemtobe

examined(p.76).AccordingtoLeedyandOrmond(2005),qualitativeresearch

providestheopportunitytoexaminereal‐world“phenomenainalltheircomplexity”

(p.133).DenzinandLincoln(2008)describedqualitativeresearchasa“situated

activitythatlocatestheobserverintheworld”(p.4).Consideringquestionsthrough

42

aqualitativelensallowstheresearcherto“studythingsintheirnaturalsetting[s],

attemptingtomakesenseof,orinterpret,phenomenaintermsofthemeaningsthat

peoplebringtothem”(Denzin&Lincoln,2008,p.4).Thisapproachoffersthe

researchertheopportunitytoengagein“acomplexdescriptionandinterpretation

oftheproblem”(Creswell,2013,p.44).Furthermore,aqualitativeapproachpermits

datacollectionthroughmultipleavenuesthatdeveloparichandin‐depth

understandingoftheparticipants,theirperspectives,andhowtheydeveloped.

DenzinandLincoln(2008)likenedthequalitativeresearchertoa“quilt

maker”(p.5).Byadoptingthismoreflexibleandfluidapproachofmaking

connectionsofmeaning,theresearcherisableto“invent,orpiecetogether,new

toolsortechniques”(Denzin&Lincoln,2008,p.5).Withaqualitativedesign,the

researcherhastheopportunitytoactivelyseekconnectionsbetweenseemingly

disparatepiecesofinformationinanefforttodiscernmeaning.Qualitativeresearch

toolsalsoofferthefreedomtostitchtogethermultiplesourcesofinformationand

perspectives,theveryfabricofresearch,intoafinalformthatbringsfortharich

tapestryofmeaningandunderstanding.

Moreover,employingqualitativemethodshonors“thevoicesofthe

participants”(Creswell,2013,p.44).Throughtheinterviewprocess,valuable

insightintotheparticipants’“interiorexperiences”isgleaned(Weiss,1994,p.1).

AccordingtoWeiss(1994),aqualitativeapproachprovidestheopportunityto

understand“howeventsaffectedtheirthoughtsandfeelings”aswellas“what

peopleperceive[d]andhowtheyinterpret[ed]theirperceptions.”(p.1).By

43

interviewingparticipants,theresearchergainsadeepunderstandingofthefactors

thatshapetheirviewpoints(Weiss,1994).Theinterviewprocessoffersaunique

windowofunderstandingintotheirvariedandcomplexinteriorstories.

Byexaminingmultiplelayersofdataholistically,theresearcherhasan

avenuetoaccountforthemulti‐facetedinterplayoffactorsthatshape“situations,

settings,processes,relationships,systems,orpeople”(Leedy&Ormond,2005,p.

134).Thisprovidestheopportunitytodigdeeplyandunearthvastsourcesof

informationinordertobuild“richdata”(Maxwell,2013,p.126).Byanalyzing

numeroussourcesofqualitativedata,theresearcherdevelopsarichandmulti‐

dimensionalportraitofeachparticipants’inner‐landscape.

CaseStudyResearchDesign

Thenatureofthisresearchwaswell‐suitedforacasestudydesign.

AccordingtoCreswell(2013),thecasestudydesignallowstheresearcherto

“explore[s]areal‐life,contemporary...caseovertime,throughdetailed,in‐depth

datacollectioninvolvingmultiplesourcesofinformation”(p.97).Creswell(2013)

suggestsacasestudyisappropriatewhenthereare“clearlyidentifiablecaseswith

boundaries”andagoaltoprovideand“in‐depthunderstandingofthecases”

(p.100).AccordingtoStake(1995),thegoalofthecasestudygoesbeyondmere

understanding;theobjectiveisto“appreciatetheuniquenessandcomplexityofthe

case,itsembeddednessandinteractionwithitscontexts”(p.16).Yin(1994)

explainedthatcasestudiesmaybe“explanatory,exploratory,ordescriptive”(p.1).

44

Thisinquirywasdefinedbytheparametersofspecifictimeandplace,ora

“bounded”casestudybyexaminingstudentsinonewriting‐intensiveELAcourse

throughoutasinglesemester(Creswell,2013,p.97).Theboundedcasestudydraws

“attentionto[thecase]asanobject,ratherthanaprocess”(Stake,1995,p.2).The

datacollectedduringthatdefinedtimeperiodgivesanin‐depthunderstandingof

theissuesexplored(Stake,1995;Yin,1994).

Thiscollectivecasestudyexaminedsevenstudentswithinonewriting‐

intensiveELAcourseduringonesemester.Acollectivecasestudyexamines

multipleparticipantstoascertainthe“importantcoordinationbetweenthe

individualstudies”(Stake,1995,pp.3‐4).Acasestudyis“notsamplingresearch;”

instead,theobjectiveisto“maximizewhatwecanlearn”(Stake,1995,p.4).Case

studiesmaybe“intrinsic,”whenaresearcherseekstounderstandaparticularcase,

or“instrumental,”withagoalofunderstandingsomethingbeyondaspecificcase

(Stake,1995,p.3).Stake(1995)acknowledgedthatgiventhenatureoftheresearch

design,“notallcasesmayworkoutwell”(p.7).Nonetheless,acaseisa“specific,a

complex,functioningthing”(Stake,1995,p.2).Thisstudyisinstrumentalinseeking

tounderstandtheimpactofattitudesandbeliefsaboutwritingonpreservice

teachers’futureclassrooms.

Withacasestudyapproach,the“researcherisakeyinstrument”(Creswell,

2013,p.45).Byplacingmyselfinclosecontexttotheparticipants,inthemethods

classandbyinterviewingparticipantsoverthecourseofthesemester,Ihadthe

abilitytocarefullyevaluateandconsidertheinformationgleanedandformulate

45

patternsofmeaning(Denzin&Lincoln,2008;Leedy&Ormond,2005).Through

multiplein‐depthinterviewswithparticipants,conductingafocusgroup,and

visitingthemethodscourseeachclassperiod,Isituatedmyselfinthe“activitythat

locatestheobserverintheworld”(Denzin&Lincoln,2008).

SocialConstructivism

Asocialconstructivismtheoreticalframeworkperspectiveprovidedthe

frameworkforthisstudy.AccordingtoCreswell(2013),thegoalofsocial

constructivismistounderstandtheworldand“developsubjectivemeaningsof[the

participants’]experiences”(p.24).Throughthisframework,theresearcher

examinestheproblemthroughawidelenstounderstandandexplorecomplex

patternsofexperience.AccordingtoPatton(2002),socialconstructivismexplores

whatisknownaboutrealityratherthan“constructingreality”(p.96).The

researchergathersdatathroughopen‐endedquestionsthataredevelopedtobe

generalinnaturetoallowparticipantsto“constructthemeaningofthesituation”

(Creswell,2013,p.25).Thesocialconstructivismframeworkguidedthe

developmentofinquiryusedinthequestionnaire,theinterviews,andthefocus

group.Inaddition,thisframeworkguidedthecreationofthewritingmemories

matrix.Throughmultiplelinesofinquiry,participantsdescribedtheattitudesand

beliefstheyhaveconstructedtheirperceptionsaboutwriting,exploredtheforces

whichtheparticipantsbelieveshapedthemovertime,andhowthoseviewswill

informtheirapproachtowritinginstruction.

46

Constructivismassertsthathumansunderstandandcreatetheirperceptions

ofrealityandtheworld.However,itisimportanttonotethatconstructivismis

regardingthe“construct[ion]ofknowledgeaboutreality,notconstructingreality

itself”(Patton,2001,p.96).AccordingtoPatton(2001),humanperceptionisthe

resultofbeing“’madeup’andshapedbyculturalandlinguisticconstructs”(p.96).

Newell,Koukis,andBoster(2007)statethatthetotalityofcircumstancesand

experiencesintersecttoformperceptionsofreality.Ratherthantakingan

exclusionaryperspective,theconstructionistapproachexaminesthesumtotalof

experienceswhichcombinetodefineperceptions(Newell,Koukis,&Boster,2007).

BackgroundoftheResearcherMyWritingHistory

Inordertofullydiscussmywritinghistory,Imustfirstaddressmylifelong

relationshipwithreading.Oneofmyearliestandmostfondmemoriesisreading.

Mystay‐at‐homemotherreadtomedailyandasmuchasIrequested.Mymother

laughswhensherecallsfinishingabookasIsatonherlap.“Again!”Iwouldchant

andclapmyhandsuntilshestartedreadingtome.

Althoughmyparentswerenotcollegegraduates,theyfullyunderstoodthe

importanceofeducationandthepowerofreading.Butinourblue‐collarfamily,

moneywasscarceandpurchasingbookswouldhavebeenaluxurybeyondour

budget.Yetmyparentswerefirmlycommittedtoexposingmetotheprintedword

andreadingregardlessofourfinancialstate.Asaresult,ourFridaynightoutings

revolvedaroundvisitingtheShelbyParkLibrary.Irememberthethrillofwalking

47

hand‐in‐handwithmymotherupthestepstothebeautifulCarnegiebuilding,

knowingthatontheothersideofthoseenormouswoodendoorswasanewworld,a

worldofbooks.

Whenweentered,thelibrarianscalledmebyname.Whiletheywould

strictlyenforcethecheck‐outlimitwithotherpatrons,theywouldbendtherulesfor

me.I’dleaveeachFridaynightwithmyarmloadofbooks;Iwasgiddyknowing

thesebooksweremine–atleastfortheweek.AsIgrewolder,myfeelings

blossomedintoviewingbooksaspossibilities.Throughthem,Icouldbeanyone,do

anything,andgoanywhere.

Thatsentimentaboutbookspermeatesmylifetothisveryday.Icannot

imagineadaywithoutreading:forinformation,forescape,orforsheerpleasure.A

stackofpossibilitiesalwayssitsbymybedside,beckoningme.Mylifeisenrichedon

adailybasis,thankstomyloveoftheprintedword.Iowemyparentsadebtof

gratitudethatcanneverberepaidforcreatingabook‐filledhome(thankstothe

publiclibrary)fosteringenthusiasmforreading,andsettingthestageforalifelong

joyoflearning.

Ifyouaskedmymotheraboutmyreadinghabits,shewouldtellyouithas

beenalifelongpursuit.Butifyouaskedheraboutmywriting,shewouldsaythatI

havebeentryingtowritesinceIcouldholdoneofthosechubby,first‐gradepencils.

WhileIdonothavemymother’srecollectionsofmyenthusiasticmarkmaking,I

haveavividmemoryofthefirsttimeIreceivedattentionformywriting.Insecond

grade,Mrs.Kemperaskedustowriteastoryaboutourfamily.Atthattime,Iwas

48

lobbyingfornotjustasibling,butspecificallyababysister.Iwroteasomewhat

embellishedtalethatIproudlyreadaloud.IrecallMrs.Kemper’sexpressionasmy

storyentitled,“TheArgument,”unfolded.Afterhearingmytaleofwoe,myseven‐

year‐oldmindenvisionedthatshewouldcallmyparentstotellthemtheywere

beingunfairtotheironlydaughter.Indeed,Mrs.Kemperdidcallmyhouse.

However,theendresultwasnottheoneIexpected.

Whilehercallwasmainlytoletmyparentsknowthattheirdaughterwas

spinningyarnsinfrontoftheclass,theothermessagewasmoresubtle,yet

incrediblysignificanttome.AsInervouslywatchedmymother’sreactiontoMrs.

Kemper’scall,atthatmomentIrealizedanimportanttruthaboutwriting–words

couldinfluence,persuade,andconvince.Mywords.AlthoughIwasonlyasecond

grader,Ifundamentallyunderstoodagreatermessage.Writingwas,inessence,

power.

Throughoutelementaryschool,teacherspraisedmywriting.Theirpositive

feedbackfueledmydesiretoexcelandinspiredmetoengageincomposition

outsideofschool.Eachday,Ifaithfullyrecordedmyinnermostsecrets,dreams,and

desiresinmyswirly,dramatichandwritinginaseriesofdiariesthateachlocked

withatinygoldkey.Duringmyjuniorhighyears,Iwroteconstantlyandsecretly

beganworkonanovel.Countlesshourswerespentdevelopingmycharacters,

outliningtheplot,andcreatingscenesthat,atleastinmyyoungmind,hadthe

perfectbalanceofliterarytension.AsIwroteandre‐wrotemystoryinlonghandon

yellowlegalpads,IdecidedthatIwasgoingtobecomeawriter.

49

Oneday,Isummonedthecouragetoannouncemycareeraspirationstomy

parents.Mymother,whohadjustgraduatedcollegewithadegreeineducation,was

quicktoshareheropinionaboutmyvocationalchoice.“Choosearealjob,”she

advised.“Youcanwriteontheside.”Myfather,whoearnedalivingasashift‐

workeratanoilrefinery,agreed.“You’llnevermakingaliving[asawriter],”he

cautioned.Inretrospect,Iknowtheywerewell‐meaningandquitecorrectintheir

commentary.However,thosewordsspokenwiththebestofintentionsextinguished

theflamesthatforsolonghadfueledmyloveofwriting.Ivividlyrecallsulkingup

thestepstomyroom,gatheringthestacksofyellowpaperthatcontainedmy

carefullypennedwordsandstuffingtheminthetrashcan.Forthenextthirteen

years,Iwrotenothingmorethanwhatwasrequiredofme.

Aftergraduatingfromcollegeandteachingseveralyears,IjoinedthePeace

Corps.BeforeIleft,afriendgavemeagift‐‐onethatchangedmylife‐‐abeautifully

boundtraveljournal.“Youneedtowriteaboutyourexperience,”sheadvised.“You

thinkyou’llremember,butyouwon’t.”Ithankedherforthethoughtfulgiftandeven

packeditmysuitcase.ButIwascertain,formanyreasons,thatIwouldn’tbeusing

it.First,thejournalwassolovely,Icouldn’tenvisionmarringthepageswithmy

mundanethoughts.Second,andmoreimportantly,duetomyparents’comments

aboutbecomingawriter,Iwasterrifiedtocommitmywordstopaper.ButItooka

leapandbegantorecordmyobservationsandreflectionsaboutlifeasaPeaceCorps

volunteer.Twenty‐sevenyearsand45journalslater,Irarelymissadayofputting

pentopaper.

50

UponreturningfrommyPeaceCorpsadventurewithmyloveofcomposition

firmlyintactonceagain,Ienteredlawschool.Itwastherewheremypassionfor

writingwastakentoanewlevelthroughthelensoflegalwritingandresearch.In

mydoctoralprogram,Iamnowconsumedwithapassionforresearchabout

writing.Ithaspropelledmeinmyquestforknowledgeandunderstandingthe

attitudesandbeliefsaboutwritingthatpreserviceteacherswillultimatelytakeinto

theclassroom.KnowingthatnoteveryoneloveswritinginthewaythatIdo,Iseek

tounderstandhowtheattitudesandbeliefsthatpreserviceteachershaveabout

writingwillinfluencehowtheyteachthisabsolutelycriticalskillinthefuture.

MyTeachingHistory

Aftergraduatingfromcollege,myteachingpositionswereatinner‐city

elementaryandmiddleschools.Whileteachingiscriticalatanyage,themiddle

schoolplacementhadadditionalchallenges:Howtomakeeducationmatterand

motivatestudentstostayinschool.Manyhadbeenheldback,experiencedfailure,

orlivedinconditionsthatIcouldnothaveimagined.Althoughourhouseholdcould

affordjusttheessentials–noextras‐Ihadastablehomelifeandfeltloved.But

seeingmystudentshavingtodealwithhunger,notknowingwheretheywould

sleepthatnight,orfamilyinvolvementinthelegalsystem,itwasdifficulttomake

schoolandhomeworkapriorityintheirlives.Moreover,mystudentsandtheir

familiesoftenfailedtoseetheimportanceofaneducationorhadless‐than‐positive

experiencesdealingwiththeeducationalsystem,administration,andteachers.

51

Othersviewedschoolingassomethingtotolerateuntiltheyreachedtheagewhere

theycouldsimplydropout.Iknewthesestudentswereathighriskofcontinuing

thepathoftheirparents,enteringasystemthathadtaughtthemtodistrustthe

establishment.Formost,itwasasystemthathadfailedthemrepeatedly.Believing

thateducationcouldprovideawayoutofpoverty,Iwantedtocreatean

environmentthatwouldencouragethemtoremaininschool.Throughwriting,my

studentscouldtelltheirstoriesandlettheirvoicesbeheard.

Thelanguageartsbookmandatedbythedistrictcontainedbothwritingand

grammarinstructionpresentedinamannerthatmystudentsfounddryandutterly

irrelevant.Thus,mygoalbecametofindawaytomakewritingmeaningful.Atthat

timeduringtheearly1980s,rapmusicwasgainingpopularity.Mystudentslistened

toartistssuchasL.L.CoolJ.,RunD.M.C.,andTheSugarHillGang.Althoughthebeat

ofthetunesthatechoedfromstudents’boomboxeswasengaging,through

conversationswithmystudents,Idiscoveredthatthewordsofthesongsresonated

deeplywiththem,conveyingeloquentlywhattheywerefeelingand

experiencing.Listeningtotheirdiscussionsaboutthelyricsgavemetheideato

havestudentswritetheirownrapsongs.Asaclass,wewouldanalyzethewordsof

theirfavoritesongsexaminingwordchoice,structure,andcontent.Thenthe

studentsworkedinpairstowritetheirownrapsongsthattheywouldsharewith

theclassonThursdayafternoon.Ifthestudentsactivelyparticipatedduringthe

weekandpresentedtheirworktotheirclassmates,onFridaystudentscouldbring

inaboomboxandlistentomusic.Studentsenthusiasticallyembracedthis

52

approachtowritingthroughouttheyearanddidnotbalkasmuchatotherwritten

assignmentswhichwereintroduced.WhileIamconfidenttheirattitudesabout

writingimproveddramaticallyinmyclass,Iamuncertainastowhetherthis

approachcarriedovertoothercontentareasorgavethemanymotivationto

continuetheireducation.

AsaPeaceCorpsvolunteerwithpreviousclassroomexperience,Iwas

assignedtoteachmethodscoursesatWesternSamoaTeacher’sCollege,theonly

teacherpreparationprograminthecountry.WhileinstructioninEnglishwasa

challenge,wasthateducationisauniversallanguage.Studentsatthecollege

wantedtoeffectivelyfindwaystoengagetheirpupils.Giventhelackofsupplies

thatwascommonthroughouttheschoolinthecountry,thesecourseswere

especiallyimportanttohelpthemfindcreativeandlow‐costwaystodeliver

content.

Althoughmylegalcareerfelloutsidethecontoursoftheclassroom,itwas

remarkablehowmuchteachingwasapartofmylifeinthelaw.Asanattorney,it

wascriticaltohavetheskillstodistillthecomplexitiesofthelawbothinwriting

andspeakingwhenconveyinginformationtoaclient.Asalitigatorinthe

courtroom,itwasmytasktoeducatethejuryaboutthecase.Clearlyconveying

information,bothverballyandinwriting,wasessential.These,too,areskillswhich

areattheheartofbeingateacher.

Aftermovingtoauniversitytown,IhadtheopportunitytoteachFirst‐Year

Seminarcoursesforincomingfreshmen.Theseminarcoursewasnotonlydesigned

53

tohelpstudentsconnectwiththeirinstructorandpeers,butalsotofostercritical

thinking,discussion,andwriting.Gradingtheirfirstwrittenassignmentwasa

soberingexperience.Itwasastonishinghowvastlythestudents’writingabilities

varied.Whilesomestudentswereundoubtedlycapableofcollege‐levelwriting,

othersstruggledtowriteathesisstatement.Shockingly,somestudents’papers

consistentlylackednoun‐verbagreement.Otherstudentswroteinasimplistic

mannerthatsuggestedthattheysufferedextremewordpovertyorneverhad

instructionregardingtheimportanceofwordchoice.Someturnedinwhatcould

onlybedescribedasafirstdraft.Clearlytheseindividualshadneverbeentaught

revision.Iwasalarmed.Althoughitwasnotpartoftheformalcurriculum,norwas

itawritingclass,Iincorporatedwritinglessonseachweek.Iboughteverystudent

inmyclassaspiralnotebook.Afterstudentsconveniently“forgot”theirnotebooks,I

decidedtokeepthenotebooksmyselfandbringthemtoclasseachday.Myfirm

beliefwasthatthemorestudentswrote,thebettertheirworkwouldbecome.While

theygrumbledandgroanedearlyinthesemester,theyengagedindailywriting

practice.Notonlydidthishelpimprovetheskillsofthestrugglingwritersinclass,it

madestrongerwritersevenbetter.

Afterenteringmydoctoralprogramincurriculumandinstruction,writing

andthewritingprocessquicklyemergedtotheforefrontofmyinterestareas.While

teachingaseminarsectionforeducationstudents,andlatercompletingateaching

internshipwithaseniorprofessorinanearlylearning‐to‐readcourse,Idiscovereda

similartrend.Aswritingwasdiscussed,studentswouldfreelyadmittheir

54

apprehensions.“I’mnotaverygoodwriter,”wasfrequentlytheirlament.Others

expressedopenhostilityaboutwriting:“Ihatewriting,”“It’sachore,”and“Writing

issohard.”Afterlisteningtopreservicestudents’comments,onequestionemerged

againandagaininmymind–whatimpactwilltheseattitudeshaveontheirability

toteachwritingintheK‐8classroom?Iwonderedifandhowtheirless‐than‐

positivemindsetswouldimpactpreserviceteachers’approachtowriting

instructionintheirfutureclassroom.

RoleoftheResearcher

Myexperienceasawriter,professionallyandpersonally,hasshapedthe

formulationandrefinementofmyresearchinterestsinmydoctoralprogram.My

lifelongwritingexperiencesmadeitvirtuallyimpossibletoseparatemyselffromthe

topic.However,thisapproachpermittedmetoexaminemythoughts,beliefs,and

motivationsastheresearcher(Creswell,2013).Withoutquestion,bysituating

myselfintheresearch,Ibroughtmyconsciousorunconsciousviewsintothe

researchprocess(Maxwell,2013).Asaresult,Icouldnotextricatemyselffrommy

perceptionsoftheresearchquestions.However,byidentifying,acknowledging,and

examiningtheseviews,Iwasbetterpreparedtoaddressmysubjectivityandmake

choicesthatwouldavoidunwittinglyintroducingbias.

Toreflectuponmyexperiences,Idrafteda“researcheridentitymemo”prior

tobeginningmyresearch(Maxwell,2013,p.34).Throughthismemo,Iexamined

“mygoals,experiences,assumptions,feelings,andvaluesastheyrelate[d]to[my]

55

research”(Maxwell,2013,p.34).Moreover,thismemoallowedmetoconsiderany

concernsthatinterjectingmyidentityinthestudymightcreate(Maxwell,2013;

Silverman,2005).Inthisway,Ihadtheopportunitytoreflectandmakeresearch

decisionsthatweremindfuloftheidentitythatInecessarilybroughttomystudy.

Likewise,theresearcheridentitymemowasalsousedtoexplorepossible

biasregardingmycommitteechair,whoallowedmetoconductmyresearchwithin

herclassroom.Itwascriticaltomaintainanawarenessofanyinfluencethis

relationshipmighthaveonmyresearchorinterpretationofthedata(Maxwell,

2013).Byregularlyengaginginmindfulreflection,Imadeeveryefforttoavoidany

possibleconflictsorbias.Irevisitedmyresearcheridentitymemoatvarious

milepostsalongtheway,suchasthecodingandinterpretationofthedata.Ibelieve

mybackgroundinthelawalsogavemeauniqueperspectivethatallowedmeto

approachsituationsinmystudyfromanobjectiveandneutralstance.Byhaving

legalexperienceandutilizingthoseskills,IbelieveIhadanaddedlayerof

protectioninguardingagainstbias.

Inadditiontomyresearcheridentitymemo,Ikeptdetailedfieldnotesofmy

classobservations.Otherthanintroducingmyresearchtostudentsonthefirstday

ofclass,Ihadnostudentinteractionwiththeclassasawhole.Myroleduringthe

classobservationswasthatstrictlyasanobserver.Duringthoseobservations,I

tookfieldnotes(Maxwell,2013).Thefieldnotesservedthreedistinctpurposes.

First,thenotesdocumentedmyobservationsastheyhappened.Next,Iusedthis

journalasaplacetoreflectuponnotonlytheobservations,butalsomyresearchas

56

itunfolded.Finally,mynotesservedasanotherlayerofreflectiontoguardagainst

researcherbias.

Tounderstandmyparticipants’responsesinthecontextofthesocial

constructivismframework,Iutilizedmembercheckingandrespondentvalidation.

Duringtheinterviews,Iparaphrasedstudentresponsesatregularintervalsto

derivetheirsubjectivemeaning(Creswell,2013).Bydoingso,Icouldtake

immediatestepstocorrectmyunderstandingandadjustmyquestionsaccordingly.

Similarly,Iendeavoredtoaskopen‐endedquestionsthatwouldpreventleadingthe

participanttoadesiredresponse.Whilethesemi‐structuredinterviewquestions

weredevelopedbeforehandwiththisgoalinmind,follow‐upquestionsnecessarily

arisethatwerenotpreviouslyscripted.Ithenhadtheopportunitytoreflectupon

theparticipantresponses,myfollow‐upquestions,andmyinterpretationof

answersinmyresearchjournalandbyrevisitingmyidentitymemo.

SiteSelection

Myresearchtookplaceatonemid‐sized,researchinstitutionintheRocky

Mountainwest.TheenrollmentatthisinstitutioninSpring2016was14,631with

12,706undergraduates(T.Dysart,personalcommunication,April6,2016).The

distributionofthetotalstudentpopulationwas6,819females(47%)and7,812

males(53%)(T.Dysart,personalcommunication,April6,2016).Theethnicitydata

fortheoverallstudentpopulationisasfollows:White(84%),International(5%),

Hispanic/Latino(3%),Tworaces(3%),AmericanIndian/AlaskaNative(2%),

57

Black/AfricanAmerican(1%),Asian(1%),Unknown(1%),NativeHawaiian/Pacific

Islander(0%)(T.Dysart,personalcommunication,July8,2016).Thisuniversityis

considereda“highresearchactivity”institutionbytheCarnegieFoundationforthe

AdvancementofTeachingofferingarangeofundergraduatebachelor’sdegreesand

awards50ormoredoctoraldegreeseachyearspanning15ormoredisciplines

(CarnegieFoundationfortheAdvancementofTeaching,2015).Atthisschool,the

DepartmentofEducationishousedintheCollegeofEducation,Health,andHuman

Development,thethirdlargestcollegewithnearly2000students.

InSpring2016,therewere402studentslistedaselementaryeducation

majorswhichis3%ofthetotalundergraduatestudentenrollmentattheland‐grant

institution(T.Dysart,personalcommunication,April6,2016).Ofthesestudents,

340(85%)werefemalesand62(15%)weremales(T.Dysart,personal

communication,April6,2016).Theethnicityofstudentsenrolledintheelementary

educationmajorareasfollows:White(92%),Hispanic/Latino(3%),Tworaces

(1%),AmericanIndian/AlaskaNative(1%),Asian(0%),Black/AfricanAmerican

(0%)(T.Dysart,personalcommunication,July8,2016).InstitutionalReviewBoard

(IRB)approvaltoconductthisstudywasreceivedonDecember3,2015.

Table1.EnrollmentDatabyGenderStatus Enrollment Female MaleTotalnumberofstudents 13,631 6,819(47%) 7,812(53%)Graduatestudents 1,925 1,034(54%) 891(46%)Undergraduatestudents 12,706 5,785(46%) 6,921(54%)Elementaryeducationmajors 402 340(85%) 62(15%)

58

HistoryoftheTeacherEducationPrograminThisStudy

Theland‐grantinstitutionlocatedinthenorthwestattheheartofthisstudy

hasalonghistoryofprovidingteachereducation(D.Redburn,personal

communication,December15,2016).Initially,educationcourseworkfocusedon

agricultureandindustrialsubjects(D.Redburn,personalcommunication,December

15,2016).In1944,thecollegeformedadepartmentofeducationwithagoalto

prepareteachersforjuniorhighandhighschoolclassrooms(D.Redburn,personal

communication,December15,2016).Inresponsetotheteachershortagebetween

1955‐1970,thecollegerespondedbyexpandingtheprogramtoincludeabachelor’s

degreeforelementaryteachers(D.Redburn,personalcommunication,December

15,2016).In1987,thedepartmentofeducationjoinedforceswithanother

departmenttoformthethirdlargestcollegeattheinstitution(D.Redburn,personal

communication,December15,2016).Theunifiedstructureofthesetwo

departmentsasonecollegeatthisinstitutionremainstothisday.

Thedepartmentofeducationoffersthreeundergraduatemajors:elementary

education,K‐12education,andsecondaryeducation.Studentsintheelementary

educationprogram,whichprovidesthefoundationforcertificationforK‐8teaching,

werethefocusofthisstudy.Theelementaryeducationprogramprovidesgeneral

education,whichincludestheuniversity‐widerequiredWRIT101CollegeWriting,

theAdvancedPlacement(AP)equivalent,oranACTEnglishscoreof28orhigher,an

SATCriticalWritingscoreof650 orhigher(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,

September14,2015).Consequently,astudentcouldmoveforwardinthe

59

elementaryeducationprogramwithouteverhavingcompletedacollege‐level

writingcourse.

Thisteachertrainingprogramoffersmethodsclassesinlanguagearts,math,

socialstudies,science,art,andhealthacrosstheK‐8gradelevels(A.Ellsworth,

personalcommunication,September14,2015).Finally,thisprogramrequires

extensivefieldworkandpracticumexperiencesthataretakeninconjunctionwith

themethodscourses(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).

Elementaryeducationstudentsarerequiredtospendfourhalf‐daysinpracticum

placementwhileenrolledinmethodscoursesforLanguageArts,CreativeArts,Math,

SocialStudies,Science,andHealthEnhancement(A.Ellsworth,personal

communication,September14,2015).

Priortotakinganyofthemethodscoursework,studentsarerequiredto

completeEDU382Assessment,Curriculum,&Instruction,a3‐creditcourse(A.

Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).Totakemethodscourses

forsocialstudiesorscience,studentsmusthavesuccessfullycompletedidentified

subject‐areaprerequisites(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,

2015).Likewise,mathmethodsstudentsmusthavecompletedthethreerequired

mathcourses.LanguageartsmethodsstudentsmustcompleteEDU331Litand

LiteratureforChildren,athree‐creditsurveyofchildren’sliteraturecourse(A.

Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).However,studentsare

notrequiredtocompleteEDU330EmergentLiteracy,athree‐creditlearning‐to‐

readcoursepriortotheK‐8languageartsmethodsclass(A.Ellsworth,personal

60

communication,September14,2015).Thisprogramdoesnotrequireacourse

devotedtowritinginstruction,norisonecurrentlyoffered.

HistoryofEDU330–EmergentLiteracy

Thefoundationallearning‐to‐readandearlyliteracycourseinthisprogram

isEDU330EmergentLiteracywhichisthreecredits(A.Ellsworth,personal

communication,September14,2015).However,priorto2009thiscoursewasEDEL

305PrinciplesandPracticesofEarlyLiteracyK‐3forfourcredits(A.Ellsworth,

personalcommunication,July31,2016).In2009,inconjunctionwithstandardizing

coursenumberingwithintheuniversitysystem,thedecisionwasmadetomakeall

coursesintheprogramthreecredits(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,July31,

2016).Asaresult,elementaryeducationstudentsareonlyrequiredtotakethe

followingcoursestofulfilltheirdegreerequirements‐EDU330EmergentLiteracy,

EDU397K‐8Methods:LanguageArts,andEDU438LiteracyAssessment,Diagnosis

andInstruction‐foratotalofninecreditsinEnglishLanguageArts(A.Ellsworth,

personalcommunication,July31,2016).

Today,EmergentLiteracyintroducesstudentstotherichandcomplexworld

ofphonics,developmentallyappropriateclassroompracticesforliteracy

instruction,andtranslatingtheoryintopracticeusingauthentictextsandreal‐world

examples(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).Inaddition,

studentslearnhowtoassessprogrammingforstrugglingreadersanddevise

differentiatedinstructionalplans(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,

61

September14,2015).Thepre‐requisiteslistedinthecoursecatalogueareEDU331

LitandLiteratureforChildren,EDU382Assessment,Curriculum,&Instruction,and

juniorstanding(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).While

ideallyEDU330shouldbetakenbeforeEDU397K‐8Methods:LanguageArtsto

scaffoldthelanguageartsmethodscourse,manystudentstakethecourses

concurrently(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).

Consequently,thesestudentsareatadistinctdisadvantage(A.Ellsworth,personal


Onewriting‐specificthree‐creditcourse,EDU263MethodsofTeaching

Grammar,wasdevelopedtogivestudentsarevieworfoundationalskillsin

grammar(A.Ellsworth,personalcommunication,September14,2015).Even

thoughthecoursewasoffered,itwasnotrequired(A.Ellsworth,personal

communication,September14,2015).Thiscourseremainslistedinthecourse

catalogue,buthasnotbeenofferedsince2012(A.Ellsworth,personal


TheCourse:EDU330‐EmergentLiteracy

Participantswereenrolledinonewriting‐intensiveELAcourse,EDU330‐

EmergentLiteracy,duringtheSpring2016semester,whichranfromJanuary13

untilMay6.Therewere35studentsenrolledintheclasswith30(85%)femalesand

5(15%)males.ThisisconsistentwiththeoverallenrollmentoftheDepartmentof

Educationdemographic.ThecoursemetonTuesdaysandThursdaysfrom1:40p.m.

62

until2:55p.m.Duringthefallsemester,twosectionsareoffered.Inthespringand

summer,onesectionisavailableeachterm.Nowriting‐specificmethodscourseis

offeredorrequiredinthecurriculum.SinceIcompletedateachinginternshipinthis

ELAcourseaspartofmydoctoralprograminFall2014,Irequestedaccesstothis

courseinSpring2016toconductmydissertationresearch.Ichosethiscoursefor

mystudyforthreereasons:theprofessorprovidesdaily,intensiveinstructionon

writingskills;shehasadeepunderstandingofboththeconventionsandprocessof

writing,andshewritesforprofessionalandpersonalreasons.

Accordingtothecoursecatalog,therearethreepre‐requisiteslisted:junior

standing;EDU331,achildren’sliteraturecourse;andEDU382,anassessment

course.ThecatalogdescriptionofEDU330readsasfollow:“Currenttheory

concerningEmergentLiteracyanddevelopmentallyappropriateclassroom

practices.Emphasisisonabalancedapproachwhichincludesphonicsandothercue

systems,useofauthenticchildren'sliterature,anduseofprogrammedreading

materials.”Writinginstructionisincorporatedindirectdailyinstruction,writing

journals,casestudies,andotherwrittenassignments.TheEDU330Spring2016

syllabusisattachedasAppendixA.

Participants

Duringthefirstweekofclass,allstudentsenrolledinthecoursetookthe

WAT(Daly&Miller,1975)(AppendixB).TheWATassessmentwasadministeredas

partofthequizzessectiononthesyllabus.Onthefirstdayofclass,theprofessor

63

excusedherselffromtheroomneartheendoftheperiod.Atthattime,Iintroduced

myselfandmyresearchproject.IexplainedthatIwouldbeobservingintheclass

eachdayduringthesemester.Finally,afterIexplainedtheparticipation

requirementsandthetimecommitmentforparticipants,IadvisedstudentsthatI

wouldgiveeveryonewhocompletedthestudya$25giftcard.

IreviewedandrankedtheWATscoresfortheentireclass(N=35).WAT

scoresfallonacontinuumfrom26,thehighestapprehensionlevel,to130,the

lowestapprehensionlevel.Inthisclass,thescorerangewas49–121withamedian

of85.30.Myoriginalplanwasforparticipantstohavehigherlevelsofwriting

apprehensionasevidencedbyascorebetween26and59,butnothigherthanthe

WATmedianscoreof78.However,beforeIstartedmystudyIanticipatedthatI

mightberequiredmodifymyparametersforseveralreasons.First,thescoresmay

nothavefallenwithinmydesiredrange.Next,studentswhowereinvitedto

participatebasedontheirscoresmaydeclinetoparticipate.Asaresult,Iwasfully

awarethatImightberequiredtoreframethecriteriaformystudy.

ElevenstudentshadWATscoresthatwerebelowthemedianof78as

definedbyDalyandMiller(1975).OnJanuary15,2016,Isenteachofthese

studentsanindividualemailinvitingthemtoparticipateinmyresearch.Three

studentsrespondedaffirmatively.Fivestudentsdeclinedcitingwork,school,or

personalreasons.Threestudentsdidnotrespond.OnJanuary17,2016,Iemailed

thenextfourstudentswhowererankedbasedontheirWATscores.Tworeplied

thattheydidnotwishtoparticipateandtheothertwodidnotrespond.OnJanuary

64

19,2016,Iemailedtheremainderoftheclassseekingparticipants.Fourstudents

respondedaffirmativelyandtwostudentsrepliedthattheywouldbewillingto

participateifneeded.ThefinalfourparticipantshadWATscoresrangingfrom91–

113,whichindicatedlowerlevelsofwritingapprehension.Eachstudentchosea

pseudonymbywhichtheywouldbeidentifiedinthestudy.

Myoriginalplanforthisstudywastopurposefullyselectfivetoseven

participantsfromtheinitialgroup(Maxwell,2013;Patton,2001).However,this

planassumedthattherewouldbeapoolofstudentsthatfitthecriteriaformystudy

andthattheywouldbewillingtoparticipate.AccordingtoStake(1995),“choosinga

casemay“beno‘choice’atall”(p.3).Whiletherewere11studentsthatfellbelow

themedianscoreof78,onlythreeagreedtobeapartofmystudy.Asaresult,Ihad

toquicklyreframemystudyinordertoproceedduringtheSpring2016semester.

TheWATscoresofthenewparticipantsgavemetheopportunitytounderstand

whatfactorsinfluencedtheattitudesandbeliefsofwritersacrossthespectrum,and

toexaminehowtheseattitudesandbeliefsinformbothapprehensiveandconfident

writers’approachestowritinginstruction.WhileStake(1995)statedthatdifferent

numbersofparticipantsareappropriatefordifferentstudies,“balanceandvariety

areimportant;opportunitytolearnisofprimaryimportance”(p.6).

65

Table2.SummaryofParticipantsParticipant Age Year GPA

GradeWRIT101 ACTEnglish/

ReadingScoreWAT#1

Sadie 20 Junior 3.74 A 26/28 49Sydney 20 Junior 3.3 B 21/20 62Amber 20 Senior 4.0 Exempt 32/36 64Kay 21 Senior 3.38 B‐ 22/25 82Lily 20 Junior 3.93 A 24/27 93Gina 32 Senior 3.65 B Notavailable 94Mary 20 Junior 3.94 A 26/25 113

DataCollection

Multiplemethodsfordatacollectionwereusedwiththeparticipants:WAT

scores,aquestionnaire,agraphicrepresentation,twosemi‐structuredface‐to‐face

interviews(oneatthebeginningandthesecondneartheendofthesemester),a

focusgroup,classobservations,observerfieldnotes,participantworksamples,GPA,

WRIT101grade,andACTorSATEnglish/readingscores,andselectedwriting

journalentries.

Table3.DataSourcesDataSource WritingApprehensionTest(WAT)pre‐andpost‐test (AppendixB)Questionnaire (AppendixC)Twosemi‐structuredinterviews (Interview#1–

AppendixE,Interview#2–AppendixG)

Graphicrepresentation–Writingmemorymatrix (AppendixD)Classobservations Fieldobservernotes

Focusgroup (AppendixF)Studentworksamplesandjournalentries ACTEnglish/readingscore GPAandWRIT101grade

66

WritingApprehensionTest(WAT)

ThedevelopmentoftheWATbeganwith63itemsratedonafive‐point

Likertscale(Daly&Miller,1975).Itemsoriginallyincludedweremodeledbasedon

apreviouslytestedcommunicationapprehensionsurvey(Daly&Miller,1975).Daly

andMiller(1975)groupedtheitemsintocategoriesthatexploredconcernsabout

“anxietyaboutwritingingeneral,teacherevaluationofwriting,peerevaluationof

writing,aswellasprofessional”(p.245).Afactoranalysiswasconductedonthe164

studentresponsesfromundergraduates(Daly&Miller,1975,p.245).

Thefinalinstrumentconsistedof26statementsthatparticipantsrankona

scaleof1(stronglydisagree)to5(stronglyagree).Scoresrangefrom26to130with

ameanof78.Scoresbetween97and130indicatealowlevelofwriting

apprehension.Scoresbetween60and96donothaveasignificantlevelof

apprehension;however,participantsscoringontheouterrangeswillexperience

apprehensionlevelssimilartotheneighboringcategories.Scoresbetween26and

59suggesthighlevelsofwritingapprehension.Lowernumbersinanyscorerange

suggestgreaterlevelsofanxiety(Daly&Miller,1975).

DuringtheSpring2016semester,theWATwasadministeredonthefirstday

ofclassandgiventomeinasealedenvelope.IgradedandrankedtheWATscoresto

determinemyinitialpoolofpossibleparticipants.Forpurposesofthequizgrade

points,Iadvisedtheprofessorthatallofthestudentscompletedtheassessmentand

shouldbeawardedthethreepoints.TheWATscoreservedastheinitialscreenfor

67

selectingparticipants.ThesecondWATwasadministeredonlytostudyparticipants

atthebeginningofthefinalinterview.

Questionnaire

Studyparticipantsrespondedinwritingtoaquestionnairewithtenopen‐

endedquestions.Thesequestionsweredesignedusingthesocialconstructivism

frameworktogleaninformationabouttheparticipants’pastexperienceswith

writingandwritingteachersthroughouttheiracademiccareersthatmayshedlight

upontheirattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting.Questionsalsoaskedparticipantsto

considerthewritingprocessandmajorinfluences.Thisquestionnairewas

developedtoprovideaviewintotheinner‐thoughtsoftheparticipantsutilizinga

socialconstructivismframework(Creswell,2013).Thesequestionsweretestedina

pilotstudywithjunior‐standingelementaryeducationstudentsinSpring2014and

againinFall2015.Pilotstudiesareausefultoolintheclarificationofvarious

aspectsofdesignelements(Maxwell,2013).Afterreviewingstudentfeedbackfrom

thepilotstudy,Irevisedeachsetofquestionsforclarity.Asaresultofthesetwo

small‐scalepilotstudies,thequestionshadbeenrefinedtoobtainspecific

informationaboutattitudesandbeliefsaboutwritingandthefactorsthatinfluenced

theirdevelopment.

Beforetheface‐to‐faceinterviews,studyparticipantsreceivedacopyofthe

questionsviaanemailcommunicationandwereaskedtorespond.Oncecompleted,

studentswereaskedtoemailtheirresponsesbacktome.Thisapproachallowedthe

participantstohavetimetoengageinathoughtful,reflective,andunhurried

68

response.Byreviewingtheiranswerspriortoourfirstinterview,Icoulddevelop

follow‐upquestionsformysemi‐structuredinterview.Inaddition,this

questionnairegavemetheopportunitytohaveanintroductoryglimpseofeach

student’swritingandthoughtprocessaboutwriting.

Semi‐StructuredInterviewsandGraphicRepresentation

Twosemi‐structuredinterviewswereconductedwithparticipants,oneat

thebeginningandthesecondattheendofthesemester.AccordingtoWeiss(1994),

itispreferabletoconductmorethanoneinterviewwiththesameparticipant.The

questionsweredevelopedusingasocialconstructivismframework.Creswell(2013)

statesthattheinterviewquestionsshouldbeframedtoelicitmorespecificand

detailedresponsesratherthangeneralities.Inaddition,interviewsalsoprovided

theopportunitytogainin‐depthinformationthatcouldnotbegleanedfrom

observationorothersources(Weiss,1994).

Atthebeginningofthefirstface‐to‐faceinterview,participantscompletedan

informalsketchordrawinginawritingmemorymatrixtorepresenttheir

recollectionsaboutwritingfromfourdifferenttimeperiodsintheiracademiclifeto

facilitatediscussionandprovideanother,non‐verballayerofmeaning.Thisgraphic

representationelement,whichwasdevelopedtoallowtheparticipanttoconstruct

meaningfrompastexperiences,wastestedinapilotstudyinSpring2014.Student

feedbackfromthepilotstudywasenthusiasticandindicatedthisactivitywasan

enjoyablewaytobeginourface‐to‐faceinterview.Studentsinthepilotstudyalso

reportedthatithelpedthemfeelmorerelaxed.However,theprimarygoalofthe

69

writingmemoriesmatrixwastoallowtheparticipantstoutilizeamultimodal

expressiontopromotedeeperthinkingandengagementwiththeirattitudesand

beliefformation.Studentsaffirmativelystatedthatthisactivitygavethemthe

opportunitytoreflectupontheirwritinghistoryinauniquefashion.Thedata

collectedthroughthequestionnaire,thetwosemi‐structuredinterviews,thewriting

memoriesmatrix,andthefocusgroupwasself‐reported.Follow‐upquestionsat

eachstageallowedmetoseekclarification,butallanswerswerebasedonthe

participants’self‐perceptionofbeliefsinresponsetothequestions.

Studentswereofferedachoiceoflocation,eitheronoroff‐campusforthe

interviews.Afterdiscussingeachstudent’spreference,alloftheinterviewstook

placeinmyofficebecauseitwasquiet,comfortable,andconvenient.Thechoiceof

locationallowedstudentstospeakfreelyduringtheinterviewsinceitwasprivate.

Thefirstinterviewtookplaceduringthesecondweekofthesemesterandlasted

approximatelyonehourforeachstudent.Thesecondtookplaceduringthe

fourteenthweekofthesemesterlastedlessthan45minutes.Eachinterviewwas

audiorecordedandtranscribedbyme.Duringtheinterview,Ialsotooknotes.

Tovalidatethedata,Iusedmembercheckingor“respondentvalidation”

(Maxwell,2013,p.126).AccordingtoMaxwell(2013),thisisthe“singlemost

importantwayofrulingoutthepossibilityofmisinterpretingthemeaningofwhat

participantssayanddoandtheperspectivetheyhave”(p.126).Duringthe

interviews,Iwouldperiodicallysummarizetheresponsesandaskifmy

understandingwascorrect.Atthisjuncture,theparticipantwouldagreethatmy

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summarywascorrect,offeradditionalinformationtoclarifymyunderstanding,or

correctanymisinterpretations.Byhavingparticipantsengageinfrequentand

immediateclarification,IwasalsoabletobesureIwasnotinadvertently

interjectingbiasintomyquestionsormyinterpretation.Tofurtherguardagainst

anymisconceptionsinmyinterpretationofthedataandprovideasecondary

review,Iaskedparticipantstoreviewtheirtranscripts.

ClassObservations

AccordingtoCreswell(2013),observationsprovidea“keytoolforcollecting

datainqualitativeresearch”(p.166).Observationsincludedetailsaboutthe

“physicalsetting,participants,activities,interactions,conversations,andyourown

behaviorsduringtheobservations”(Creswell,2013,p.166).Duringthespring

semester,IattendedEmergentLiteracyeachclassperiodandsatinthebackofthe

roomsoasnottointerfereorbeadistraction.Itookdetailednotesonthewriting

instructionprovidedatthebeginningofeachclass.Ialsonotedanyreactions,

questions,orcommentsfrommystudyparticipants.Mywrittenobservationswere

recordedduringtheclassperiodobserved.Afterreviewingmynoteseachday,I

madeadditionalnotationstofillingaps,elaborate,ortoreflect.

Onthefirstday,IinteractedwiththestudentswhenIexplainedmyresearch

project.Forallremainingclassperiods,Isimplyobservedtheinstruction(Creswell,

2013).Inthatrole,Iwasan“outsiderofthegroupunderstudy,watchingandtaking

fieldnotesfromadistance”(Creswell,2013,p.167).AlthoughIobservedthe

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writinginstructionspecifically,Ialsonotedanyquestions,comments,orconcerns

frommyparticipants.

FocusGroup

Thegoalofafocusgroupistofosterdialogueanddiscussionamong

participantstolearntheirthoughtsandfeelingsonatopic(Krueger,1998;Krueger

&Casey,2000).Sincethegoalisself‐disclosure,itiscriticalthatfacilitatorscreatea

“comfortable,permissiveenvironment”(Krueger&Casey,2000,p.9).Focusgroups

typicallyhavefivetotenparticipants,whichis“smallenoughforeveryonetohave

anopportunitytoshareinsightsandyetlargeenoughtoprovidediversityof

perceptions”(Krueger&Casey,2000,p.10).Thefocusgroupquestions,whichwere

developedusingasocialconstructivismframework,wereopen‐endedand

presentedinalogicalfashion(Krueger&Casey,2000,p.12).AccordingtoKrueger

andCasey(2000),a“questioningroute”isthepreferredforacademicresearchand

wasusedtodevelopthequestions(p.43).Thismethod,incontrasttothe“interview

guide,”providedamorecompleteandsequencedlineofinquiry(Krueger&Casey,

2000,p.43).Questionsshouldbe“clear,short,open‐ended,”“movefromgeneralto

specific,”and“usethetimewisely”(Krueger&Casey,2000,pp.42‐43).Finally,the

roleofthemoderatoristoelicitthe“feelings,comments,andthoughtprocessesof

theparticipants,”nottoachieveconsensus(Krueger&Casey,2000,p.12).

Thefocusgrouptookplacetheweekaftertheclassmid‐termexaminationin

aconferenceroomoncampus.Sixofthesevenparticipantsattended.Ginawas

unabletoattendduetofamilycommitments.Ispecificallychosethisweeksothe

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studentswouldnotbedistractedbyexampreparation.Ifacilitatedthefocusgroup,

whichlastedapproximately90minutes.Themeetingwasaudiorecordedand

transcribedbyme.Duringthefocusgroup,Ialsotooknotes.AlthoughIcreated

questionstoguidethegroup,manyofthestudentresponseselicitedadditional,

tangentialinformationfromotherparticipants.

StudentWorkSamplesandJournalEntries

Aspartofthedatacollectionprocess,Iexaminedandanalyzedexemplarsof

participants’writtenwork.Bydoingso,Igainedanotherperspectiveaboutthe

problembeingstudied(Maxwell,2013).Thisapproachaddedalayerofdepth

throughtheexaminationofactualwritingsamplesofbothformalandinformalwork

products.Inaddition,thisservedasapointoftriangulation(Maxwell,2013).

Throughoutthesemester,Icollectedandanalyzedparticipantjournal

entries.Thesemoreinformalwrittenpiecesofferedaglimpseintoattitudes,beliefs,

andfeelingsaboutwritingdependingupontheprompt.Thejournalentrieswerein

responsetoanassigned,weeklyprompt,suchasafavoritequote,aresponsetoan

inspirationshortreadinginclass,orafreewrite.Responseswerehandwrittenand

weretypicallyonetotwopages.Thejournalgradeswereforcompletionofthe

response.

Inaddition,Icollectedandanalyzedtwoformalwrittenassignmentsthat

wereapracticalapplicationoftheskillslearnedinclass.Intheseassignments,

studentsassumedtheroleoftheschoolreadingspecialistwhoevaluatedandmade

recommendationsforafictionalstudent.Further,theseexemplarsallowedmeto

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observetheparticipants’writingoverthecourseofthesemester.Iuseda6+1traits

analysistoevaluatetheassignments(Spandel,2009).

Priortothebeginningofthesemester,theprofessorandIdiscussedplans

regardingthecollectionofstudentworkproductduringthesemester.Thejournals

werekeptinindividualnotebookswithnamesonthefrontcover.Onceaweek,

studentsplacedtheirjournalsintwocanvasbags.Afterclass,Itookbothbagstomy

office.Iretrievedtheparticipantjournalsfromthebags,madecopies,andthen

placedthembackinthebagsinarandomfashion.Forthecasestudies,students

placedtheirworkinanenvelope.Attheendofclass,Itooktheenvelope,made

copiesoftheparticipants’work,thenreplacedthemarbitrarily.Ithenreturned

themtotheprofessor.Afterthecasestudiesweregraded,Iwasabletoaccess

participants’gradesthroughtheonlinegradebook.Ipurposefullycollectedthework

inthismannertoprotecttheidentityofmyparticipants.

AdditionalInformation

Inaddition,thefollowingquantitativedescriptivedatawascollectedfor

participants:overallGPAandtheWRIT101grade.Ipersonallycollectedthis

informationfromtheelectronicdatabase.Thesedatapointsservedasanother

methodoftriangulation(Maxwell,2013).ACTEnglishandReadingscoreswere

collectedifavailable.TheACTtestisastandardizedbenchmarkthatmeasures

academicreadinessforcollege.Thereadingsectiontestscomprehensionandthe

Englishtestsusage,mechanics,andrhetoric.

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DataAnalysisStrategiesandProcess

Inqualitativeresearch,dataanalysisoccursinthreephases.First,the

researchermustprepareandorganizethedata(Creswell,2013).Next,the

researcherdeterminesthemesforthedatabycodingthecontent(Creswell,2013).

Thentheresearcherisabletodistilltheinformationintoconclusions(Creswell,

2013).Mydataanalysisutilizedthesocialconstructivismframework.

AccordingtoCreswell(2013),theresearchershouldalsodescribehisorher

personalexperiencesrelatingtothephenomenabeingstudied(p.193).The

purposeofthisstepisto“setasideresearcherexperiences”(Creswell,2013,p.193).

First,Ireviewedmynotestakenduringtheinterviewforeachparticipant

immediatelypriortobeginningmytranscription(Maxwell,2013).Listeningtothe

interviewasItranscribeditaddedanotherlayerofmeaningtomyperceptionsof

thecontent.AfterIcompletedthetranscription,Ithenreadtheinterviewas

transcribedandmadenotesonmyobservations.Thisallowedmetodevelop

“tentativeideasaboutthecategoriesandrelationships”(Maxwell,2013,p.105).

Next,Ireviewedthequestionnaireresponses,thegraphicrepresentation,andthe

observationnotes,andjournalentriesandcodedthedata.Icompletedthesame

procedureforeachparticipant.Incasestudies,Creswell(2013)statedananalysis

containsin‐depthdescriptionsthroughwhichpatternswillemerge.

Next,Icodedthedatabycompilingalistofsignificantstatementsfromthe

interviews,questionnaireresponses,andthedrawingstodescribetheparticipants’

attitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting(Creswell,2013;Maxwell,2013).Thesame

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procedurewasdoneforthefocusgrouptranscripts.Thesestatementswerethen

groupedintothemes,or“broadunitsofinformation”whichweredistilledintoan

overallgroupoffivetosixcategoriesthrough“leancoding”(Creswell,2013,pp.184

–185)Inaddition,awrittendescriptionoftheparticipants’experienceswas

developedtoprovidea“texturaldescription”oftheexperiencesthatincluded

verbatimquotes(Creswell,2013,p.193).The“structuraldescription”described

howthephenomenonwasexperienced(Creswell,2013,p.194).Thetexturaland

structuralelementswerecombinedtoformthe“essence”(Creswell,2013,p.194)of

theexperience.AccordingtoCreswell(2013),thisdescribesbothwhatwas

experiencedandhowitwasexperienced.Duringeachphaseofreview,Icreateda

memoobservationsandideasforfurtherdevelopment.

Next,Ireviewedthedocumentscollectedduringthesemester.Iexamined

thejournalentriesforcontent.Ianalyzedtheworksamplesusingthe6+1traits

model(Spandel,2009).Similarly,IreviewedthedescriptiveregardingGPA,ACTor

SATscores,andWRIT101grades.Icomparedtheworksampleswithgradesfrom

thewritingcoursetodeterminethelevelofcongruencebetweentheparticipant’s

writingintheELAclass.Thisallowedmetodrawinferencesthatcouldnotbe

gainedduringaninterview(Maxwell,2013).

MethodsofAchievingTrustworthinessandCredibility

Triangulationwasusedtocorroboratethedata.AccordingtoCreswell

(2013),researcherscollectdatafrommultiplesourcesto“providecorroborating

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evidence”(p.251).Thistechnique,whilenotfoolproof,canprovidevaliditytothe

data(Creswell,2013,p.251).Inaddition,Creswell(2013)statedvalidityand

reliabilitymaybeenhancedthrough“prolongedengagementandpersistent

observation”(p.250).Inthisstudy,datawascollectedfrommultiplesourcesto

providelayersofmeaningandovertheperiodofasemester.

Acasestudyinvolvesa“real‐life,contemporarycontextorsetting”(Creswell,

2013,p.97).Thisanalysisalsoprovidessignificantstatementsfromparticipants

andincorporatedverbatimquotes.Thislevelofdetailprovideda“rich,thick

description”whichaccordingtoCreswell(2013)allowsreadersto“makedecisions

regardingtransferability”(p.252)andvalidity.

Bykeepingaresearchjournalthroughoutthesemester,Iwasabletoguard

againstresearcherbias(Creswell,2013).Thisjournalservedasacross‐checktobe

sureIdidnotdistortingthedataormakeinterpretationsbaseduponmy

experiences,biases,ororientations(Creswell,2013).

ChapterSummary

Originally,Ienvisionedthisstudyinvolvingstudentswithhigherlevelsof

apprehensionaboutwriting.However,duetothestudentswhoagreedto

participateinmystudy,Ihadtoreframetheparameterstoincludemoreconfident

writerswithintheframeworkofmyresearchquestions.Whilethiswasnotthe

initialconception,thedatayieldedprovidedarichcomparisonoftheparticipants

acrossthespectrumaswriters,theattitudesandbeliefstheypossessaboutwriting,

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whatfactorsinfluencedthem,andhowthosewillimpactandinformtheirapproach

towritinginstruction.Consequently,Ifoundthatmyresearchevolvedintoamore

complexandinterestingstudythanIanticipated.

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CHAPTERFOUR‐RESULTS

“Ifyouknowthefundamentalsofwritingpracticeandhavebeendoingthem,youhavesomethingtostandon.Noonecanknockyouover.Thisistrueconfidence.”(Goldberg,1990,p.7).

Thischapterwillexaminetheresearchquestionsthatguidedthestudy

organizedaroundresponsesfromeachofthesevenparticipants:(1)Howdo

preserviceteachersperceiveandpracticethewritingprocess?,(2)What

experiencesshapedtheirattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting?,and(3)Howdo

preserviceteachers’viewsoftheprocessinformtheirthinkingaboutteaching

writing?Inordertobecomeconfidentandeffectivewriters,teachersmustbe

comfortablewiththeconceptandtheprocessofwritingandbewritersthemselves

(Bratcher&Stroble,1994,Street&Stang,2009).

Datawascollectedduringthespring2016fromparticipantsenrolledinEDU

330EmergentLiteracy,a3‐creditcoursedesignedtopreparefutureteachersinK‐8

toteachreadingandallotheraspectsofEnglishlanguagearts.Thiscoursemeton

TuesdaysandThursdaysfrom1:40until2:55p.m.eachweek.

Priortothebeginningofclass,anagendawaswrittenontheboardfor

studentstoprovidearoadmaptotheday’sactivities.Theclassfollowedasimilar

dailyformat.First,eachclassopenedwithashortselectionsharedtomotivateand

inspiresoon‐to‐beteachers.Then,theprofessorpresentedwritingtipsand

techniquestolaunchthenextlesson.Theseshortmini‐lessonsweretightly

sequencedandcoordinatedasskillsbuildingblocks.Earlyinthesemester,basic

grammarandwritingtips,suchassubject/verbagreementthe“ruleofthree,”were

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reviewed.Theinstructionwasprovidednotonlyasarefresher,butstructuredto

provideideasofhowtoapproachandintegratewritinginstructionintheirfuture

classrooms.Lessonswerepresentedthatdistinguished“teachertalk,”themore

academiclanguagethatfutureeducatorsmustknow,from“kidtalk,”thewayin

whichteachersshouldintroduceaconceptinadevelopmentallyappropriate

fashion.Formorepracticeandreinforcement,studentscouldcompletegrammar

reviewmodulesintheircoursepack.However,theseself‐checkingmoduleswere

optionalandnotpartofthegrade.Consequently,studentswhofeltproficientdid

notneedtocompletetheassignment.Thosewithunevenskills,whileencouragedto

completethepracticeexercise,werenotrequiredtodosoasthefocusoftheclass

wasreading,notlanguagebasics.Asthesemesterprogressed,thebuildingblocksof

morecomplexgrammarandwritingtipswerepresentedsuchasverbals,

appositives,andprepositionalphrases.

Likewise,strategiesforrevisionandeditingwereoffered.Studentspracticed

thedailyskillsinthecontextofauthentictextsuchasstoriesfromnewspaperand

magazinearticles.Forexample,onJanuary26,2016twosentencesfroma

newspaperarticleregardingtheFlint,Michiganwatercrisiswereontheboard.

Individually,eachstudenteditedthesentences.Thenasagroup,theclassworked

togethertorevisethesentenceomittingweaklinkingverbs,combiningthe

sentences,andremovingrepetition.Theprofessorworkedthroughtheexampleand

theclassdecidedonthefinalproduct.Finally,theprofessordiscussedhowto

incorporatethisactivitybygradelevel.Theobjectiveofthewritingtipswastohelp

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studentstransformtheirownwriting,aswellastheirfuturestudents,from

lacklusterandordinarytostrong,fluent,andconciseprose.

Thesegrammarandskillsmini‐lessonsweredesignedtolast10to15

minutesperclassperiod.However,severaltimestheselessonslastedbeyondthe

allottedtimebecausethemajorityofstudentshadnotmasteredtheconceptas

writers.Forexample,onFebruary9,2016,theclassstruggledduringthereview.As

aresult,onFebruary18and26theprofessorofferedtwo,optionalout‐of‐class

grammarhelpsessionstoreviewconceptscoveredto‐dateforstudentswhowanted

additionalassistance.Nineteenstudentsattendedthefirstsessionandseven

attendedthesecond.Theadditionofwritingbasicstotheschedule,however,did

subtractfromtimethatcouldhavebeendedicatedtoteachingchildrentoread.

Participants

Whileeachparticipantwillbeprofiledin‐depth,thefollowingtable

summarizestheattitudesandlevelofwritingself‐confidenceforeachofthe

participantsthatemergedafteranexaminationofthedatacollected.

Amongthesevenparticipantsinthisstudy,theattitudesandbeliefsabout

writingwerevariedaswouldbeanticipated.Likewise,studentlevelsofself‐

confidencefellatvaryingpointsalongthespectrum.Someofthestudents,likeMary

andGina,hadveryhighlevelsofself‐confidenceaswritersandstrongpositive

feelingsaboutwriting.Incontrast,SydneyandSadiefellattheoppositeendofthe

continuum.Bothstudentshadnegativeattitudesaboutwritingandlackedself‐

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confidenceaswriters.Althoughalloftheparticipantsexpressedvaryingattitudes

andlevelsofconfidence,everystudentindicatedthattheirfeelingsaboutwriting

wouldhaveastrongimpactontheirteachingofwriting.Categoriesdevelopedfor

groupingthestudentsasreluctant,emerging,andconfidentwriters.

Table4.Participants’AttitudesandSelf‐ConfidenceParticipant Attitudes Writingself‐confidence CategorySadie Negative Reluctant ReluctantSydney Negative Reluctant ReluctantAmber Neutral Emerging EmergingKay Neutral Medium‐high Confident Lily Positive Medium‐high ConfidentGina Positive High ConfidentMary Positive High Confident

ReluctantWritersSadie

Sadieisa20‐year‐oldjuniorwhowasborninasuburbofastatecapital.

SadiehadaGPAof3.74andWRIT101gradeofA.HerACTEnglishandreading

scoreswere26(78thpercentile)and28(88thpercentile).

Sherecalledonlylearningmanuscriptandcursiveletterformationregarding

writingintheearlygrades.Althoughshewascooperative,duringthefirstinterview

herbodylanguagesuggestedthatshedidnotliketalkingaboutwriting.Specifically,

shefidgetedwhendiscussingherwritingmemoriesatthebeginningofthe

interview;however,shedidnotappeardistressedoruncomfortable.Asthe

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interviewcontinued,shebecamemorerelaxed.Itisalsopossiblethatshewas

nervous.

Aroundthirdorfourthgrade,Sadiereportedsometeachersusedwriting

journalsthatwerenotgraded.Butshenotedthatmostwritinginstructionduring

thattimeutilizedworksheets.“Ihatedthem,”shestated.Whenshewas12‐years‐

old,shemovedtoasmallruralcommunityinadifferentstate.Insixthgrade,she

rememberedan“awesome”writingteacherwhohadtheclassexaminedifferent

typesofwritingand“submittheirworktocontests.”Sadienotedthisteacherhad

themostinfluenceonherwritingbecauseshepermittedchoiceontopics.Sadiesaid

thisclasswas“oneofthefirstexperiencesIhadwithrevisionandworkingon

multipledrafts.”Nonetheless,inmiddleschool,shedescribedwritingas“alotmore

structuredandalotlessfun.”

Therewereabout200studentstotalinherhighschooland50inher

graduatingclass.Sadiedidnotrecalldoingmuchwritingduringthattime.“We

wrotescholarshipessays,”shesaid.Whensheenteredcollege,Sadiewas“dreading”

WRIT101.“ThewritinginstructionIhadinschooldidn’treallypreparemefor

college,”shesaid.

Sadiefeltlikeshewouldbeabetterwritertodayifher“teachershadlether

writemore.”“Ididnothavetowritemuchduringmyschoolcareer,”shesaid.In

additiontoalackofpractice,Sadiealsoexpressednegativefeelingsbasedonthe

waywritingwaspresentedinschool.“Irememberwritingasbeingmoreofa

punishmentinsteadofafunactivity,”shesaid.

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SadietheWriter.Sadieusedwordssuchasdread,punishment,anddifficultto

describewriting.HerinitialWATscoreof49wascongruentwithhernegative

perceptionsofherselfasawriterandfellsquarelyintherangeof26to59which

indicatedhighlevelsofwritingapprehension.Herexperienceswithwritingwere

mixed.“Iliketowritewhenitisjournals,creativewriting,oropinion,”shesaid.But

sheviewedwritingpapersforclassina“formalstyle”asnegative.Inaddition,Sadie

foundrevisionprocessfrustrating.

Atthebeginningofthesemester,Sadiewas“kindofnervousaboutitand

dreadingallthewriting[I]wouldhavetodo.”However,shefelt“alittlemore

confident”towardtheendofthesemesterdueto“moreemphasisongrammar.”“I

feellikeI’mwritingbetter,”shereported.Herscoreof53onthesecondWAT

showedslightimprovement,butshestillremainedinrangeofhighlevelsofwriting

apprehension.

SadietheFutureWritingTeacher.Sadiehadstrongopinionsaboutwriting

instruction.First,thebestteachersmakewriting“funandenjoyable”forstudents.

“Itshouldn’tfeellikepunishment,”shesaid.Onewaytoaccomplishthiswasby

givingstudentschoiceregardingtopicsonassignmentsthatwereapplicabletoreal‐

lifesituations.Sadiealsostronglybelievedwritingshouldneverinvolveworksheets,

whichshedeemedbusywork.Teachersshould“nevergivepointlesswriting

assignments.”Thissentimentdovetailedintoheropinionthatteachersshould

alwaysexplainthe“why”ofwriting.

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Sadiewoulddifferentiateinstructionandbesupportiveofstudentefforts.“I

willmakesureI’mnotgivingassignmentsthatthestrongwriterswillbesuccessful

at,”shestated.Intermsofsupport,shewillbe“availableforstrugglingwriters.”In

addition,shewillofferopportunitiesforstudentstopracticewritingin“low‐risk”

settingssuchasjournalsorungradedassignments.Oneofthemostimportant

thingsshewilldointheclassroomisgiveherstudents“anunderstandingof

sentencestructureandgrammar.”“Studentsbelievetheirteachersknow

everything,”shesaid.“Butifateacherspeakswithbadgrammar,studentsmay

assumewhattheteacherhassaidiscorrect.Studentsmayevenrepeatwhatthe

teacherhassaidusingbadgrammar.”

Sydney

Sydneyisa20‐year‐oldstudentwhowasborninasuburbofamajor

metropolitanarea.SydneyhadaGPAof3.3andACTEnglishandreadingscoresof

21(58thpercentile)and20(52ndpercentile),respectively.Sydneywaspleasantand

appearedcomfortableduringourinterviews.

Beyondlearningmanuscriptandcursiveletterformation,shedidnothave

muchrecollectionofwritinginstructionduringherearlyschoolyears.Shestated,“I

rememberalotofsubjects[frompre‐Ktofourthgrade],butwritingwasnotoneof

them.”Duringfifthtoeighthgrade,Sydneyspecificallyrecalleddailyjournalwriting

infifthgrade.“Forsomereason,Ilovedtheprompts,”shesaid.“Theteacherdidn’t

gradethecontentbutjustmadesureweweredoingthem.”Duringthattimeperiod,

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teacherspointedoutherwritingmistakesinfrontofotherstudents.“Thatreally

broughtmyconfidencedown,”shesaid.

Sydneydescribedherhighschoolas“notveryprestigious”andnotedthatthe

“teachersdidn’treallycareifIcametoclassornot.”Inaddition,therewasrampant

misbehavioratherschool.Therewereabout300studentsinhergrade,butonly

200graduated.“Thatwasthenorm,”shereported.Whenaskedaboutheropinion

onthe66%graduationrate,Sydneystated,“Ithinkbecausestudentsdidn’tcareand

theydidn’thaveparentspushingthemandtheteachersdidn’tcare.”

Incollege,SydneydislikedherWRIT101courseinwhichsheearnedaB.The

teacherdidn’tmakethecourse“interesting.”AccordingtoSydney,thecoursework

requiredherto“readandwritepapers–thatwasprettyhard.”Sincewritingwasn’t

oneofherfavoritesubjects,shesaid,“readingabookaboutwritingwasn’tthat

intriguingtome.”Shedidn’tlikethetext,whichwastitledWritingAboutWriting.“It

wasthemostboringbookI’veeverhadtouse,”shesaid.

Throughouthereducationaljourney,Sydneyfoundtheconsistentlack

feedbackfrustrating.Despiteherlevelsofapprehension,receivingmeaningful

feedbackdidmakeadifferencewhetheritrelatedtoimprovementsneededor

pointingoutsolidwriting.Inheropinion,ameregradeonapaperwithoutfeedback

meantlittle.

SydneytheWriter.Overall,Sydneyreportedthatshehasneverlikedwriting

andfoundittobeanegativeexperience.“I’mnotverygoodatitandthatisprobably

whyIdon’tlikeitanditisfrustrating,”shesaid.However,havingchoiceinhertopic

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influencedherfeelings.Havinga“moreopen‐endedtopic”insteadofanassigned

onemadeherenjoywritingabitmore.Inaddition,shefeltthatwritingflowand

vocabularywereimportanttraitsinwriting,butspecificallyshenotedbothofthese

wereamongherweaknesses.Likewise,sheconsideredherspellingskillswere

deficient.

Sydneyhasneverseenherselfasawriter.“Idon’tfeelconfidentor

comfortableasawriter,”shesaid.“IfeellikeIhadn’tyetgottheskillsasajuniorin

collegetowrite.”WhileherinitialWATscoreof62didnotfallintothehighlevelof

writingapprehensionrange,26to59,itwaswellbelowthemeanof78.However,

herscorewasonthelowendofthemiddle‐range,wherestudentsdonottendto

exhibitsignificantapprehension.AccordingtoDalyandMiller(1975),scoresfalling

ateitherendofthemiddle‐rangemayexperienceapprehensionrelatedtothe

adjacentlevel.Asaresult,herreportedfeelingsaboutwritingwereconsistentwith

higherlevelsofapprehension.

ThemostinfluentialpersontoherwritingwasSydney’ssisterwhowould

proofreadherpapers.Sydneydescribedherwritingprocessas“notthebest.”She

faceddifficultywithprocrastinationwhenfacedwithawritingassignment.“Getting

startedonmypapersisthehardestthingbecausesometimesIhaveahardtime

puttingmythoughtsonpaper,”shesaid.Afterbeginning,“itusuallystartsgoing

good.”Whileteachersnotedthatshehadgoodideas,Sydneyfeltshelackedthe

vocabularytoexpressherselfadequately.

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Inaddition,shedidnotlikeeditingherpapers.“OnceI’mfinishedwithit,it

goesdownhillagain,”shesaid.“IknowIhavetore‐readitandIdon’tlikedoing

that.”However,shehadlittle,ifany,instructionhowtoeditherwork.“Iwasn’t

taughthowtoeditmypapersandreallydon’tseethevalueinit,”shesaid.However,

herdislikeofeditingherworkmayalsobelinkedtoherprocrastination.“Iwait‘til

thelastminute,soIdon’thavetimeto[edit],”shestated.“Idon’tthinkI’mlikea

strongwriter,soreadingbackiskindofpainful.”

However,Sydneyreportedthatherattitudeaboutwritinghaschangedfor

thebetteroverthecourseofthesemester.“Noonehadevertakenthetimetobreak

downapaperandgivemethewritingtoolstobeabetterwriter,”shesaid.Likewise,

shehaslearnedhowtoeditherpapersandunderstandstheimpactithasonher

finalproduct.“Beforethissemester,Iwouldn’treallyevenreaditandnowIre‐read

it,revise,andhaveotherpeoplelookatit,”shestated.“IguessIfeelmore

comfortablewithotherpeoplereadingmywriting,Iguess.”Sydneyfeltherwriting

had“definitely”improved,butshestilldidn’tlovedoingit.“Papersaredefinitely

easierformenowandwhenIre‐readthemnowI’mlike,wow,thatactuallydoesn’t

soundtoobad,”shereported.Herscoreof70forthesecondWATneartheendof

thesemesterwascongruentwithimprovedlevelsofapprehension.

SydneytheFutureWritingTeacher.AccordingtoSydney,teachersshould

makestudentsfeelcomfortablewriting.Inaddition,writingshouldbefun.Oneof

themostimportantthingsateachercandois“talktotheirstudentsaboutwhatit

meanstobeagoodwriterandwhyitissoimportantthatwehavethoseskills.”

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Givingstudentschoiceabouttheirtopicsand“lettingthemwriteabouttheirown

lives”wouldhelpthem“lovewriting.”

Sydneystatedthatthebestteachersareenthusiasticaboutwriting.“They

don’tjustcometoclassandsayhere’stheprompt,gowriteaboutit,”shesaid.

Patienceinhelpingreluctantwriters,specificallytakingthetimeto“talktostudents

aboutwhatitmeanstobeagoodwriter,”wasmentionedascritical.

Despitehernegativefeelingsaboutandexperienceswithwriting,Sydney

believedthatshecouldbringstrengthstoteachingtheprocess.“IthinkI’llhave

waystogetmystudentstoenjoywriting,”shesaid.Whenprobedaboutwaysin

whichshewouldmakewritingmoreenjoyable,shestatedthatshewouldgiveher

studentschoiceonthetopicsandletthem“writeabouttheirownlives.”Likewise,

Sydneybelievedthatteachingtheeditingprocesswasessential.“Iknowhow

important[editing]isbecauseIdidn’tdothatandIknowtheconsequencesofnot

doingit,”shesaid.Finally,shefeltthatgivingmeaningfulfeedbackgavewritersthe

opportunitytoimprove.

SummaryofReluctantWriters

SadieandSydneyexpressednegativityabouttheirpriorexperienceswith

andattitudesaboutwriting.Specifically,Sydneyfeltagreatdealoffrustrationabout

thewritingandrevisionprocessbecauseshe’dneverbeentaughthowtoapproach

thetasks.Likewise,bothfelttheyhadneverhadenoughwritingpracticeorskill

development.Neitherstudentfeltadequatelypreparedforcollege‐levelwriting.

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Sydneyspecificallynotedthatshehadrarelyreceivedmeaningfulfeedbackonher

writing.

Bothstudentsemphasizedtheneedformeaningfulinstructionthatprovides

thefoundationforfuture,morecomplexwritingtasks.Neitherrecalledhaving

significantclassroomtimedevotedtodevelopingbasicskills,learninggrammar,and

writingpracticeduringtheirK‐12schooling.Asaresult,theybelievedthattheir

writingwasdeficient.

However,SadieandSydneystatedtheirconfidencehadimprovedduringthe

semester.Althoughneitherstudentconsideredherselfawriter,eachstatedthat

learningthebasicshadanimpactonimprovingtheirlevelofconfidence.Both

studentsfeltbetterequippedtofacethechallengesofteachingwritingaftergreater

emphasisonfoundationalskills,grammar,andrevision.

EmergingWriter

Amber

Amberisa20‐year‐oldseniorfromamid‐sizedcity.AmberhadaGPAof4.0

andACTEnglishandreadingscoresof32(95thpercentile)and36(99thpercentile),

respectively,makingherthehighestachievingstudentinthisstudy.HerACT

EnglishscoremadeherexemptfromWRIT101.

ItisworthabriefdiscussionofthecompletionofAmber’sGraphic

Representationatthebeginningofthefirstinterview.AfterIexplainedthetask,

Amberappearedeagertobeginandaskedifshecouldusecoloredmarkers.She

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producedapackageofcoloredgelpensfromherbackpackandproceededto

meticulouslydraw.Duringthetask,shewascompletelyengagedanddidn’tseemto

noticeoracknowledgemypresenceassheworked.Herdetailedandcolorful

representationstookabout15minutes,roughly3timeslongerthananyother

participant.

Thefocusofherearlyschoolyearswastowritesmallwordsassociatedwith

pictures.Herdepictionincludedalinedtabletpaperwithdottedlines,upperand

lowercaseletters,andwords,suchas“flower”inneatmanuscriptandamulti‐

coloreddrawingoftheimage.Forgradesfivethrougheight,Amberdrewanice

creamconewith3colorfulscoopsandacherryontop.“Itwasonaboard

somewhereshowingushowtobuildaparagraphlikeyouricecreamconewithyour

supportingparagraphsthenyourconclusionislikethecherryontop.Iwrote5‐

paragraphessayslikenobody’sbusiness,”shesaid.“Ifeellikethatwasthereallybig

focusthroughoutgradesK‐12.”Inherhighschoolyears,sherecalledwritingabout

reading.However,shelamentedthatmostoftheworkwashandwritteninclass.“I

tendtobeaperfectionist,”shesaid,“sobeingabletotypethingsisdefinitelybetter

forme.”Sincebeginningcollege,Amberhaswritten“alotmorepapersthan[she]

everdidinhighschoolsynthesizinginformationandideas.”Ambercreditedher11th

gradeEnglishteacherwithhavingthemostinfluenceonherwritingbecausehe

gavebothmeaningfulassignmentsandspecificfeedback.Shealsostatedthathe

readeverywrittenassignment.Thiswasofparticularimportancetoher.

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AmbertheWriter.Amber’sfirstthoughtonwritingwas,“Ugh,whydowe

havetothisandhowlongdoesithavetobe?”Amberrepeatedlystatedshedidnot

likewritinganddidnotfeelthathereducationadequatelypreparedherforthe

rigorsofcollegewriting.“Idon’tfeellikeIlearnedmuchaboutwritinginhigh

school,”shestated.“IhadacoupleEnglishclassesthatwerekindofajoke.”

However,shescoredinthe95thpercentileontheEnglishportionoftheACTanda

perfectscoreonthereadingsection.HerWATscoreof64wasmiddle‐rangeand

wouldevidencenostrongfeelingsofwritingapprehension,butisnearthelower

endofthespectrum.HersecondWATscore,whileimproved,remainedinthe

middle‐rangeat73.

Amberfeltcreatingoutlinesforpapersandstructuringthemproperlywere

strengths,butadmittedprocrastinatingbeginningwritingprojects.“Becauseit’snot

oneofmyfavoritethings,Itendtoputitoff,”shesaid.“Theprocessofactually

writingisn’tsomethingIlookforwardto.”Butsheacknowledgedthatshewasable

towriteifforcedtodoso.“IthinkI’madecentwriterwhenIknowwhatI’m

supposedtobewritingabout,”shesaid.Instarkcontrasttoeveryotherparticipant,

Amberdidnotlikehavingchoiceherwritingtopics.“IdobetterifI’massigned

becauseIdon’tfeellikeI’mverygoodatcomingupwithatopic,”shesaid.

Additionally,feedbackwasofprimeimportancetoAmber.

AmbertheFutureWritingTeacher.Onmultipleoccasions,Amberexpressed

thatshedidnotlikewriting.However,shefeltthatmightmakeherabetterteacher.

“IunderstandtheperspectiveofnotlovingwritingsoIknowthateverystudentis

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notgoingtolovewriting,”shesaid.Assuch,sheconsidereditastrengthforthe

classroom.Shestated:

Toacertainextent,IthinkthefactthatIdon’tlovewritingiskindofastrength, in that, I remember having a lot of teachers who lovedwritingsomuchthatweallkindofjustputourselvesinadifferentbox.She loves writing, so that’s why she’s a good writer, but we hatewritingsothat’swhyIthinkhavingateacherwho’s,likeyouknow,Idon’tlovewritingeither,butherearewaysthatwecanenjoyitandtrytobecomebetterwriters.

Amberacknowledgedthatshehashadteachers“whohaveagenuineenthusiasmfor

writing.”Butshesaid,“I’mnotgonnafakethat.Idon’tlikewriting.”

SummaryoftheEmergingWriter

Amberusedwordssuchas“notoneofmyfavoritethings,”“don’tlove

writing,”anda“have‐totask”whendiscussingwriting.Despiteherobviousandself‐

professedanxietyaboutit,Amberachievedanear‐perfectscoreontheEnglish

portionoftheACTwhichtestsusage,mechanics,andrhetoric.Ofallofthe

participants,Amberhasthehighestlevelsofacademicachievement.Shevalued

structureandbeingassignedaspecificwritingtask.Inaddition,sheisaself‐

professedperfectionist.WhileherWATscoreisinthemid‐range,whichisnot

indicativeofwritingapprehension,shewasvocalaboutherdislikeofthetaskof

writing.

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ConfidentWritersKay

Kayisa21‐year‐oldsenior.KayhadaGPAof3.38andACTEnglishand

readingscoresof22(61stpercentile)and25(79thpercentile),respectively.She

earnedaB‐inWRIT101.

Duringourinterviews,shewaspleasantandcooperative.Shegrewupina

smallfarmingcommunitywithapopulationoflessthan300.Kay’shighschoolhad

29totalstudentsandfiveinhergraduatingclass.Shedidnothavemuch

recollectionofwritingintheearlygradesbeyond“abcstuff”and“picturesand

writingbelowthem.”Ingradesfivethougheight,Kayrememberedjournaling

promptsgivenbytheteacherandwritingforfivetotenminutesdaily.Therewas

“nopressurebecausehedidn’tgradethem,”shesaid,”soyoucouldbemoreopen

aboutyourwriting.”

DuringoneofherhighschoolEnglishclasses,thewritingrigorincreased

dramatically.“Wedidagrammareveryday,dailywritingprompts,andIgotmybutt

kicked,”Kaysaid.“Weshouldhavehadtheseskillsinelementaryschool,butshe

taughtmealot.”Kayfounditchallenging.“Itwasreallyhardforme,butIeventually

gotthere,”shesaid.“Shepushedusintoit,wedidn’twanttodoit,but,youknow,

sheforcedmetobeadecentwriter.”KaycreditedthishighschoolEnglishteacher

ashavingthemostinfluenceinhereducationandinstillingapositiveattitudeabout

writing.

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Butincollege,Kayhadadifficulttimewithwriting.“Ididn’thaveastrong

background,”shesaid.“SoIstruggledalotincollegeinthoseclasses.”Withthe

exceptionofherEnglishteacherinhighschool,Kaysuggestedthatherteachers

wereill‐preparedtoteachwriting.“Theywerereallynice,buttheyweren’tthebest

teachers,”shesaid.“IneverreallyfeltpushedwhenIwasinschool.”Shewrote,

“IneverhadalotofgrammarwhenIwasyoungerandIwonderifitcouldhavebeen

that[theteachers]didnotfeelconfidentinit.”

KaytheWriter.Kaylinkedherenjoymentofwritingtoherloveofreading.“I

likedthecreativeside[ofwriting],”shesaid.“It’sastress‐relievingthing.”In

addition,Kaylikedwritingsonglyrics.“Iwantedtowritemyownsongs,butwhenI

gotintohighschool,Istartedtowriteinmyjournalinasongfashion,”shestated.

Thisisconsistentwithhermid‐rangeWATscoreof82,slightlyabovethemedianof

78,isnotindicativeofwritingapprehension. However,intermsofhercurrentlevelofwritingskills,Kaywrote,“I

wouldn’tsaythatIamapoorwriter,butIfeelIneedhelp.”Althoughshedoesnot

mindthetask,Kaydoesnotlikehavinganyonereadherwriting.“Itreallygivesme

anxietytoknowthatsomeoneisgoingtoreadmywriting,”shesaid.However,she

couldn’tarticulatetheoriginsofthisfear.

Kayfounditeasytoputherinitialideasonpaper.“It’ssuper‐easybecauseI

knowIcanputthatintoanotherdraft–it’snotsomethingthatsomeone’sgoingto

read,”shesaid.Likewise,Kaylovedjournalingbecause“noonewillreadit”and

simplygettingherideasdownonpaper.

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Incontrast,itischallengingforKaytowriteabouttopicsforwhichshehas

nostrongopinions.Shealsonotedthatitisdifficulttowriteabouttopicsshedoesn’t

enjoy.Inaddition,havingpage“constraints”isafrustration.Ifthereisaminimum

numberofpages,Kayfeelslikesheis“alwaysrepeating”herselfinherattemptto

reachthetarget.“SoIjusttrytofill,”Kaysaid.“IthinkIhavetogetallthatfilledout

andIjustaddfillersandIjustthinkthatmakesmywritingpoor.”Bytryingtowrite

therequirednumberofpages,Kayfeltlikeherwritingwasactuallyworse“because

I’veextendeditandit’sfulloffillers.”However,Kaysaidthismaybebecauseshe

lacksanextensivevocabulary“togetthosestrongerideas.”

AlthoughKayalwayslikedwriting,hersecondWATscoreincreasedby

nearly20pointsto101,oneofthelargerincreases.Kay’snewscoreplacedherin

thetoprangeof97to130whichindicatesalowlevelofwritingapprehension.Kay

attributedherimprovedconfidencetoEDU330duringspringsemester.Regarding

herbiggestinfluenceinwriting,shesaid:

ActuallyI’dliketohearmyfirstinterviewbecausethisclass[EmergentLiteracy]hasreallyhelpedmeasfarastobecomeabetterwriter.Soit’smademebewaymoreconfident...Isawhowmuchdifferentmyattitudehaschangedinmywriting.Iguessit’sbecauseIwentthroughalittlebitmoregrammarthanIwasusedto.

KaytheFutureWritingTeacher.Kayfounditcriticalforteacherstomake

writingfunsoitdidn’tfeellikea“chore.”“Everystudent,nomatterhowtheylearn,

willlearnifyoumakeitfun,”shesaid.“Ifit’snotfun,itwillturnintosomethingthat

youhate.”Kaythoughtthatincorporatingchoiceintowritingwouldhelpachieve

thisgoalofmakingwritingenjoyable.“It’sveryhardtowrite,”shesaid,“butit’sfun

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whenyoucanreallygetintowhatyou’retalkingabout.”KayrecalledherEnglish

teachergivingtheclasschoiceona10–15pageresearchpaperandtheimpactthat

made.“Choiceishuge,”shesaid.“Whenyouareawritingteacher,youwantyour

kidstobegoodwritersanditreallyshouldn’tmattertoomuchonthecontent.You

wantthemtoenjoyitwhilethey’rewriting.”

Kaythoughtitwasimportantforstudentsto“goatacorrectpace.”She

acknowledgedthatstudentsofallabilitieswouldbeintheclassroom,soitwas

importanttochallengethemoregiftedstudentswhilesupportingthestruggling

ones.Kaystressedthatrepetition,dailywritingpractice,andgrammarskillswereof

theutmostimportance.Havingateacherwhohadmasteredthefundamentalsand

wasaconfidentwriterwouldbecritical.

Lily

Lilyisa20‐year‐oldjuniorwhowashomeschooleduntilthirdgrade.Lilyhad

aGPAof3.93andACTEnglishandreadingscoresof24(74thpercentile)and27

(81stpercentile),respectively.SheearnedanAinWRIT101.

Shewascomfortableandtalkativeduringourinterviews.Shereportedthat

shelearnedtoreadwhenshewasfour.Duringherhomeschoolyears,Lily

frequentlywroteinjournalsaboutactivitiesthatcenteredaroundnatureand

science.Hermostsignificantmemorywaswritingstorieswhenshewasseven

“aboutanimalslivingintheforest.”Althoughhermom,anEnglishmajor,“triedher

besttoteachmeabouttheEnglishlanguage,Iwastooobsessedwithsciencetocare

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thatmuch.”Asaresult,Lily’shomeschoolyearsconsistedof“mainlywritingina

journal,readingtheLittleHouseseries,anddevelopingscienceexperiments.”

AccordingtoLily,hermotherwasthemaininfluenceonherloveofwriting.

Lilydescribedhermotherasan“avid”journalwriter.Sheobservedhermother

write“forafewhourseachday”in“normalnotebooksthatshefilledupsinceshe

hadus.”Lilyhadthefollowingrecollectionabouthermother’sjournals:

Shesaidshelikedtodocumentthingsliketotalkaboutgoodtimesandtogetthroughthebadtimes.Shewouldreadoverthemyearslater.Sheletmereadafewofthem,butnotallofthem.Oneday,wecanallreadthem.Itwasweirdtoreadthem.Shesaidthingsthatwedidn’tknowabouther.Shemighttalkaboutproblemsthatshehadthatwedidn’tknowshehad.

HermotherboughtLilyherfirstjournalwhenshewas6‐years‐old.Lily

reportsstillwritinginherdiaryonaregularbasis,particularlywhenshe

travels.

In4thgrade,shebeganattendingpublicschools.Sherecalledwritingdaily

journalprompts,whichsheenjoyed.“Wecouldanswerthemhoweverwewished,”

shesaid.Inmiddleandhighschool,Lilywroteletterstohergrandparentsevery

week.Butherattendancesufferedinthemiddlegrades.“Ijustdidn’tgo,”shesaid.

“Itwasreallyboring.”Shethenattendedalargehighschoolinamid‐sizedcitywith

approximately1200students.HerhighschoolworldhistorycourseandAP

Literatureclassesrequiredextensivewriting.

Uponenteringcollege,Lilyhadn’thadtodoasmuchwritingasshe

anticipated.“Ihaven’twrittenalotincollegeandIdon’tknowwhy.Theclasseshere

don’trequirethatmuchwriting,”shesaid.“Iwrotealotmoreinhighschool.”

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LilytheWriter.Fromanearlyage,Lilyhasalwaysenjoyedwriting.“Havinga

relativewhowrotedailyandmadeitaprioritytowriteinspiredmetodothesame,”

shesaid.Lilystillwritesletterstofriendsandfamilyandinherjournaleachday.“It

[writing]isapositiveexperienceforme,”shestated.“Iwouldmuchratherspend

timeworkingonanessaythanstudyingforatest.”Overall,writinghasbeena

consistentlypositiveexperienceforher.

OntheinitialWAT,Lilyscoreda93,whichevidencedalackofapprehension.

Sinceitfallsattheupper‐endofthemiddle‐range,itwasconsistentwithherlow

levelsanxietyaboutwriting.HersecondWATscoreof104showedimprovement

andplacedherinthelow‐endoftheupper‐rangewhichwasindicativeoflow

writingapprehension.

Lilycharacterizedherselfasastrongwriter,butshenotedmanygapsinher

knowledge.“I’vealwaysgottenreallygoodgradesandIneverhadtoredothem

[papers],butIdon’tknowasmuchasIshould,”shesaid,“Idon’tthinkI’masgood[a

writer]asIthought.”Sheattributedthistoalackofinstructioningrammarskills

andfoundationalbasics.Likewise,shehadn’tbeenrequiredtopracticemuch

writingincollege.

Intermsofthewritingprocess,Lilylikedhavingchoice.Whenassigneda

topic,hereffortcorrelatedwithhow“seriously[I]wantedtotakeit”or“howmuch

itwasworth.”Shethoughtthatalsomadeherendproductsuffer.“Usuallythey

don’teverturnoutaswellbecauseI’mprettyboredwithit,”shesaid.Whenshe

couldchoose,Lilystatedtheentireprocesswas“moreenjoyableallaround”and

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enhancedtheresearchphaseofwriting.Theonlyexperienceshecharacterizedas

negativewithwritingwashavingtocompletea10‐pagegovernmentpaper“abouta

boringtopicthatIcarednothingabout.”

AlthoughLilysaidshedidnotlikewritingdraftsorediting,sincethey

weren’tcreative,sheclearlyarticulatedthatshenotonlyknewhowto,bututilized,

bothelementsoftheprocess.“Igobackandre‐readitaloudtomyselfandfixany

errors,”shesaid.“Icatchsentencesthatcouldbere‐writtenforbetterfluencyand

restructureparagraphs,ifneeded.”Finally,shehadothersproofreadherworkto

offerfeedback.However,attheendofthespringsemester,Lilynowconductsan

evenmorein‐depthcritiqueofherfinalproduct.

LilytheFutureWritingTeacher.Lilyexpressedstrongopinionsrelatedto

feedbackonwriting.Lilywouldhavepreferredittobespecificanddetailedbeyond

acursory“goodjob”or“great.”GoodgradesmadeLilyassumeshewasastrong

writer.Specificfeedbackcouldhavebeenbeneficialinstrengtheningherskills.Asa

result,Lilyplannedtoprovidedetailed,meaningful,andspecificfeedbackonboth

strengthsandweaknessestoherstudents.

Next,Lilybelievedthatwritinginstructionwasfunandengagingwhen

studentshadchoiceintheirtopics.Bygivingthemachoiceofshort,low‐stakes

projects,itwouldmakepracticeenjoyable.“They’renotgoingtowanttogetbetter

iftheydon’tlikeit,”shesaid.Likewise,sheplannedtoenhancestudentenjoyment

bymakingwritingassignmentsrelevanttotheirlives.Shealsonotedthatallowing

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studentstowriteinjournalsforshortperiodsoftimeeachdaywouldbefun,low

stakes,andgivemuch‐neededpracticetime.

Finally,Lilyfeltitwascriticaltosupportwritersofallabilities.“Iwillnever

discouragekidsfromwriting,”shesaid.“Ifthere’sastudentwho’snotastrong

writer,youdon’tsayyourwritingsucks,youwanttoshowthemhowtogetbetter.”

Tohelpwritersofallabilities,Lilyplannedtouseexamplesofgoodwriting,

modeling,andprovidemeaningfulfeedback.

Gina

Ginaisa32‐year‐oldnon‐traditionalseniorwhoismarriedwithchildren.

GinahadaGPAof3.65.ShereceivedaBinWRIT101,whichwastakenin2002at

anotherinstitution.Therewerenostandardizedtestscoresavailablebecauseshe

wasatransferstudent.OntheWAT,Ginascoreda94,whichisattheupper‐endof

themiddlerange.Thisscoreisconsistentwithherlackofwritingapprehension.Her

secondWATwas119,anincreaseof25points.

Sherecalledletterformationandafocusonhandwritingintheearlygrades,

butlittleelse.Ginahasalwaysbeenastrongwriterandstatedshewas“aheadofher

peers”inwritinginmiddleschool.Duringhighschool,shewashomeschooledby

parents“whoneverhadacollegeeducation.”Mainlysherecalledwritinginher

diary,becauseit“keptthingsinperspective.”Incollege,Ginacontinuedtokeepa

journalandwritelettersforpleasure.

Ginaattributedherpositivefeelingsaboutwritingtoherpastteachers.“I’ve

neverhadateacherwhomademefeelwritingwasachore,”shesaid.“Iwentto

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schoolwithkidswhostruggledwithwriting,butIhadteacherswhowerepositive

aboutthewritingexperience.”Duringhereducation,Ginahadgrammarlessonsin

herclasses.“Ithinkthathelpedimmenselybyknowingthebasicsandhavingthe

foundationsmadewritingnotoverlydifficult.”However,Ginaalsoattributedher

lackofwritingapprehensiontoheroverallpositiveattitude.“Alotofitisyour

mindset,”shesaid.Shealsonotedthatfriendsandfamilymemberswholikedto

readherworkcontributedtoherpositivefeelings.

GinatheWriter.ItwasclearthatGinaenjoyedwritingandthewriting

process.“Forme,writingiseasy,”shesaid.“Withouttheabilitytowrite,Iwouldfeel

lostinaworldofchaos.”Outsideofhercoursework,shewritesforpleasurein

journalsandasaformofescape.Althoughshelikeswritingforherownpurposes,“I

likehavingapaperthatIcanrelatetomyfuturecareer.”Shepreferredtodoher

writingbyhand.“Ithelpsmethinkandremember,”shesaid.Inaddition,Gina

appreciatedthatwriting“leavesmemoriesforanotherpersonintheformofletters

orcards.”

Ginadescribedherprocessas“keepingthepreptoaminimum.”Sheoutlines,

buttheyarebriefandconcise.Inherfirstdraft,sheignoresspellingandgrammar.

Althoughshedidn’tfeellikeherprocesshadchanged,shestated“throughoutmy

life,I’velearnedwhatmywritingprocesslookslikeandhaveembraceditinorder

touseittothebestofmyadvantage.”Inaddition,Ginavaluedfeedbackinher

writingprocess.Accordingtoher,even“goodwritingcanalwaysbebetter.”

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GinatheFutureWritingTeacher.Ginaclearlylooksforwardtothe

opportunitytoteachwriting.Duringbothinterviews,herbodylanguageandspeech

reflectedherenthusiasm.Shespokerapidlyandleanedinassheanswered

questions.Inaddition,hergesturesbecamemoreanimatedandexpansive.Iwrote

downmyobservationsofhermannerismsinmyinterviewnotes.

Ginahadstrongfeelingsaboutthenecessityofpracticeandfoundationsin

writinginstruction.Inaddition,shestatedthatitisessentialforteacherstobewell‐

versedingrammar.“Wecan’tteachwhatwedon’tknow,”shesaid.“Theknowledge

oftheEnglishlanguageisourresponsibility[asteachers].Imustbeproficientinthe

subjectmyself.”

InGina’sopinion,shewouldbewell‐equippedtohelpchildrenwhowere

strugglingandprovideindividualizedwritinginstruction.“Youneedtofindwhat

worksandinvestthetimeinthatchild,”shesaid.“Youneedtotakeinto

considerationthateverystudentisdifferent.”However,shestatedthatteaching

writingwasamulti‐layeredprocess.“Noteveryassignmentisgoingtomakeevery

studentproficientinwritingandthatiskey,”shesaid.Forexample,withareluctant

writer,Ginasaiditcouldbeassimpleasusing“blankcomicbookpagesto

encouragethemtowriteandmakeitfun.”AccordingtoGina,feedbackisessentialto

makegoodwritingbetter.

OneofthechallengesGinacontemplatedwaswherefamiliesweren’t

supportiveofordidn’tseethevalueinwriting.“Thatmightbeoneofthebiggest

issues,”shesaid.“Studentsmaycomefromhomeswheretheyaren’texposedto

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writingortheydon’tseethevalueinit.”Shealsonotedthatparentswhodon’tfeel

comfortablewithwritingmaybereluctant,orevenunable,tohelptheirchild.

Notably,Ginaobservedwhatshedeemedlackofinterestinwriting

instructioninteachereducation:

Idon’tfeellikethereisapushtoteachustoteachkidstowrite.ThereismorefocusontechnologyineducationthatIfinddisturbing.Asthemajorityofthestudentpopulationseemssatisfied,andperhapsevenhappyaboutthat,Iamafraidthatwewillseeadrasticdeclineinthelackofspellingskills,creativethoughtandthesimpleabilitytowrite.I’mgladthatIcanteachmystudentsnotonlytowrite,buttoenjoytheprocess.Ofallthethingsthatcanbetaken,yourwordsarecompletelyyours.

Mary

Maryisa20‐year‐oldjuniorwhohaslivedinmultiplecitiesduringher

childhood.MaryhadaGPAof3.94andACTEnglishandreadingscoresof26(82nd

percentile)and25(75thpercentile),respectively.SheearnedanAinWRIT101.

Fromherearliestmemory,shefosteredherloveofwritingthroughbooksand

reading.“MyparentsreadmeHarryPotterwhenIwaslittleandwhenIcouldread

themmyself,IreadallthatIcould.ButIreallylovedwritingsoIwouldgetthelined

paperwhereyoucoulddrawpicturesandwritemyownHarryPotterstories,”she

said.“IguessyoucouldsayIlearnedtowritefromJ.K.Rowling.”Infifththrough

eighthgrade,shesaidthatinstructionwasonmechanics.“Itwasasiftheywere

teachingmechanicsandherdingustowritethewaytheywantedustowrite,”she

said.Marydescribedherhighschoolyearsasthebestbecauseshehadaninspiring

instructorwhowas“ajoytohaveasateacher.”Incollege,shestartedasanEnglish

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major,butfeltthatteachingwashercalling.However,whenshechangedhermajor,

heradvisorintheEnglishdepartmenthadmisgivings.Marysaid:

WhenItoldmyteacherIwasswitchingtoelementaryeducation,myteacher told me you better come to me if you’re not academicallychallenged. Hewas serious because he said you’re not going to bereading these kind of books. Imean, hewas right in some aspectsbecausesomeoftheclasseswetakeare–theydon’tchallengeusverymuch.

Thedecisiontoswitchhermajortoeducationwasbasedonahighschool

programinwhichsheparticipatedingradesninethrough12thatallowedherto

teachintheschool’spreschool.“Ilovedteachingandbeingapartofthekids’lives,”

shesaid.“Bysenioryear,Iwastheheadteacher,”shesaid.“Igottoteachthe

teachers,thekids,andimplementprogramming.”Whilesheadmittedthatshe

enjoyedherEnglishmajorandtheprofessors,Marymissedteachingandchildren.

“WhenIwentbackafterspringbreak,IrealizedhowmuchImissedlittlekids,”she

said.“That’swhenIdecidedtoswitch.”Currently,sheteachespart‐timeina

Montessorischoolandworksasanannyforafamily.

Maryhasalwaysbeenastrongstudentwithadeeploveforwriting.“Ilove

school,‘causeschool’sjustfunandlearningisfun,”shesaid.“Thatsoundssocheesy,

butitisforme.”ShecreditedhermotherandJ.K.Rowlingasherbiggestwriting

influences,aswellasgrowingupinahomewhereshewassurroundedbybooks.

MarytheWriter.Maryrepeatedlystatedhowmuchshelovedwriting.

Likewise,shedescribedwithgreatenthusiasmthetypesofwritingprojectsshe

enjoys.Sheespeciallylikescreativewriting,butalsolikeswritingaboutchildren

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andteaching.Whenshegetsanideaforastory,shegetstriestocapturetheidea

rightaway.“WhenI’msittingthereandhavearandomideaforacoolstory,likean

ideathatIcan’tstopthinkingabout,that’swhenwritingcomeseasyforme,”she

said.“WhenI’mthinkingaboutsomethingreallyhard,itjustflows.IfIdon’thave

paper,Ijustusemyphone.”WhileMarypreferschoiceinhertopics,shefindsways

to“tweakittostimulateinterest.”ButMarylikestheprocessofwritingevenwhenit

ischallenging.“Evenifmyideasaredifficulttoputonpaper,”shesaid,“Ifeellike

I’munloadingmybrain.”

Sheenthusiasticallydescribedhermulti‐layeredprocessindetail.Shefound

gettingherideasdown,particularlywhenshehadachoiceofthetopic,especially

easy.Herfirststepistomakeanoutline,whichshewritesbyhand.Likewise,Mary

preferstohandwriteherfirstdrafts.“I’malotmorecreativewhenI’mwithapencil

andpaper,”shesaid.Duringthefirstdraft,Maryfocusedongettingherideasdown.

“Icanorganizeitlater,”shesaid.Next,shebeginsherrevisionprocess.Bylookingit

overmultipletimesindifferentways,Maryisabletomakethemostimprovements

andpolishherfinalworkproduct.“IreadmyformalpapersaloudsothatIcanhear

mistakesandsentenceflow,”shesaid.“Doingsohelpsmerevisemoreeasilythanif

Iweretoreadmyworksilently.”Maryreadseverypaperatleast2to3times,but

sometimesmore,andmakeschanges.

Atthebeginningofthespringsemester,Maryidentifiedasastrongwriter.

ThiswasconfirmedbyherinitialWATof113.Despitehavingafirmfoundationand

ahighlevelofconfidence,Marydidn’tfindthegrammarinstructionand

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foundationalelementsthatwerepartofeachclasstoberedundant.“Cominginto

thesemester,IfeltlikeIwasagoodwriter,”shesaid.“ButIstillfoundsomethingto

learn.”HersecondWATscoreof115evidencedacontinued,butslightlyimproved,

highlevelofwritingconfidence.

MarytheFutureWritingTeacher.Maryisclearlyexcitedtoteachwritingto

herstudents.Duringbothinterviews,Ispecificallynotedherdemeanor,whichI

characterizedaslively,enthusiasticandanimated,inmyinterviewnotes,whenshe

discussedwritinginherfutureclassroom.Thereisnoquestionthatwritingwillplay

akeyroleinMary’sclassroomandherenthusiasmwillbeevidenttostudents.

Tofacilitateinstruction,Marysaiditwouldbeimportantto“gettoknow

eachstudentasanindividualandtakethetimetounderstandtheirbackgrounds.”In

herview,thiswascritical.“Myphilosophywithteachingwriting,oranything,isto

gettoknowyourstudents,gettoknowtheirhomelife,gettoknowanythingyou

canaboutthemasanindividual,”shesaid.“Withwriting,thatwouldbeso

importantwhenyouarereadingtheirwork.Youneedtohaveinsightiftheyare

strugglingwithsomethingandhowyoucanhelp.”

Byallowingstudentstohave“creativity,freechoice,andsettinggoals”in

writinginstruction,Marywouldmaximizetheiropportunitiesforsuccess.Infact,

Marysaidthebestwritingteachers“stimulatecreativitywhilepromotinglearning

aboutwriting.”Butshewasmindfulthatnotallstudentswillshareherenthusiasm

forwriting.“Iknowthatnoteveryonethriveswhenthey’rewriting,”shesaid.“Some

kidsdetestwriting.”However,shefeltthatherself‐identifiedstrengthofexperience

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wouldbebeneficialwiththosestudents.“It[experience]willhelpbecauseI

understandtheprocess,”shesaid.“Icanhelpthemthroughit.”Inaddition,Mary

underscoredtheneedforfrequentwritingpracticeandexposuretobooksand

readingtosupportwritingdevelopment.

Marywishedherinstructorsintheprogramwould“challengeusmoreand

holdusaccountabletobegreateducators.”Shementionedthatherclassmates

struggledwithsomeofthebasicgrammarconcepts.“Theydidn’tseemtoknow

much[aboutgrammar].Icouldtelltheydidn’tgetitbasedontheirquestions,”she

said.Eventhoughsheisaconfidentandcompetentwriter,Maryexpressedgrave

concernregardingthelackofwritinginstructionintheteachereducationprogram.

HerwordsechoedGina’sobservations.Shestated:

In our teacher education program, there is not much writinginstruction.WRIT 101 and Emergent Literacy are the only writinginstructionI’vehadsofarinthismajor.Ifeelthatweneedtohavearequiredgrammarandwritingclass,becausesomanystudentsdon’tgetthatvaluableinstruction.

SummaryoftheConfidentWriters

Fourofthesevenparticipantswereconfidentwriters.Therangeofinitial

WATscoresforthisgrouprangedfrom82to113placingthreeofthefourinthe

middlerangewherestudentsdonotexperienceasignificantlevelofwriting

apprehension.OnlyMaryfellfirmlyinthelowlevelofapprehensioncategorywitha

scoreof113.Onthepost‐test,everyconfidentwriters’scoreimprovedtosome

degreewitharangeoftwoto25points.WhileMary’sscoreimprovedtheleast,her

initialscorewasthehighest.However,theremaining3participants’scores

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improveddramatically,rangingfromelevento25points.Thiswasthelargestpoint

increaseforalloftheparticipantgroups.

Allofthestudentsinthisgroupdiscussedtheimportanceoffeedbackin

becomingproficientwriters.Notably,thetwomostconfidentwritersinthisstudy

emphasizedtheimportanceofmeaningfulfeedback.InGina’swords:“Goodwriting

canalwaysbebetter.”Inputfromreaderswaswelcomedandembracedasapathto

improvement.Thesestudentsviewedfeedbackhashelpful,notpunitive.Infact,they

werecriticalofteacherswhoofferedminimalorcursorycomments.

Likewise,allofthesestudentswrotefrequentlyandregularly.While

obviouslytheycompletedpapersandessaysforschool,eachengagedinwritingona

personallevel.Theformatsincludedjournaling,songlyrics,letters,andcreative

writing.Eachstudentexpressedthatwritingprovidedalevelofenjoymentand

satisfactionintheirlife.

KayandMaryspecificallylinkedtheirloveofwritingtoreading.Duringtheir

childhoods,thesestudentshadvividmemoriesofbooks.Bothaffirmatively

expressedthatreadingandearlyexposuretobookshadaprofoundimpactontheir

attitudesaboutwriting.Readingwasassociatednotonlywithschool,butwithhome

lifewheretheyreadavarietyofgenresforpleasureandentertainment.Their

memoriesaboutreadingwerepositive.Whilebothstudentsnotedthattheyarestill

avidreaders,itwaschallengingtodosowhentheywereinschool.Marydidmore

readingduringthesemesterbreaks.Sherecalledreading40novelsoverthecourse

ofonesummer.

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Table5.Pre‐andPostWATScoresParticipant WATscore#1 WATscore#2 PointdifferenceSadie 49 53 +4Sydney 62 70 +8Amber 64 73 +9Kay 82 101 +19Lily 93 104 +11Gina 94 119 +25Mary 113 115

+2

Themes

Severalthemesemergedacrosstheparticipants:

• providingexplicitandmeaningfulfeedback

• offeringchoiceinwritingtopics

• makingwritingfun,enjoyable,andpossessinganenthusiasmforthesubject

• providingadequateinstructioninwritingfoundations,skill,andgrammar

• allowingadequatetimeforwritingpractice

• helpingstudentsunderstandthe“why”ofwriting

Eachthemewillbediscussedindetailandillustratedwithstudentquotesbelow.

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ProvidingExplicitandMeaningfulFeedback Everystudentspecificallymentionedfeedbackascritical,althoughthe

reluctantwritersexpressedthemostfrustrationatnon‐existentoranemicfeedback

fromteachers.Manystudentslamentedreceivinggenericremarkssuchas“good

job”or“great”orsimplyagradeontheirpapersanddeemedituseless.Overall,

studentsfeltfeedbackshouldunderscoreandreinforcewritingstrengthsandgive

specificwaysapapercouldbeimproved.Somestudentsexpressedfrustrationata

lackofmeaningfulfeedbackduringtheireducationalcareersandfeltlikethey

wouldbebetterwritershaditbeenprovided.Whilestudentsnotedthatsome

writingmustbeinanungraded,low‐stakessetting,suchasjournalwriting,when

feedbackisgiven,itmustbespecifictobeuseful.Knowingwhattheydidwelland

waystheirwritingcouldbeimprovedwereassociatedhigherlevelsofself‐

confidence.Alloftheparticipantswerecommittedtoprovidingin‐depthfeedback

topromotewritingsuccess.Theconceptoffeedbackappearedequallywithin

studentaswriterandstudentasfuturewritingteacher.

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Table6.Feedback Quote SourceandParticipant

(ifknown)“Buildingstudents’confidenceintheirwritingabilitiesreliesonpositivereinforcementandconstructivecriticism”

Questionnaire–Amber

“Thebestthingateachercandoisgivedetailed,helpfulfeedback.”

Questionnaire–Sadie

“Myhighschoolteacherwasalwaysopenforustocomeintoherclassroomforhelp.Shewouldsay,‘cometomyhouse,emailme,callme,Icanhelpyouout.’Beforeschool,lunch,orpreperiodsshewasalwaysopenforhelpingus.Havinghergiveuphertimeforusinstilledthisrespectthatshewastheretohelp.Shedidn’twanttogiveyoubadgrades,butifyouweren’twillingtowork,shewasn’tafraid.”

Interview#1–Kay

“Feedbackwasthenumberonethingthatfrustratedmeinhighschoolandcollege.Especiallygettingapaperbackthatsaidgoodjob.IhaddoubtsastowhetherItookallthistimetowritethisanddidmyteacherevenreadit?TeachersshouldputasmucheffortinasIdo.”

Interview#1–Amber

“Iwillfocusonthepositiveaspectsoftheirworkatalltimes.Itisimportanttocorrectapaperandreinforcetheconcepts.However,itisalsoimportanttopointoutwhatyourlikeandthethingsthatworkwellinastudent’swriting.Ifateacherconstantlypointsoutthethingsthatarewrongwithoutafocusonthethingsthatareright,thestudentwillquittrying.”

Questionnaire–Gina

“Itwouldhavebeenhelpfulifmyteacherscommentedmoreonmycontentinmypaperswithprobingquestions,notjustwritingexpandhere.”

Questionnaire–Mary

“Oneofthecrazieststylesofteaching(tome)iswhenteachersalwaysleterrorsslide.Teachingstudentshowtocorrecttheirerrorsmakesthembetterwriters.”


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Table6Continued

“Iwishmyteacherswouldhavetakengoodwritingmoreseriouslyandspentmoretimegradingthemistakes.”

Questionnaire–Lily

“ThewayIseeit,ifIhavepapersreturnedthatsaywell‐writtenorgoodjob,that’sprettymuchuseless.Evenifit’sanApaper,youshouldbeabletogivesomesortoffeedback.Youcanalwaysimprove.Italsobuildsthatrelationshipthatshowsyourespectwhat[thestudents]aredoing.”

Interview#2–Amber

“Ifeellikebyreallyworkingwiththem,notjustthat‘yougota70onthispaper,’butactuallysittingdownwiththemandexplainingwhattheydidwrongandwhytheykeepmakingthosemistakessotheycanfixit.”

Interview#2–Sydney

“Theteachersjustgavemegoodgradesandtheyreallydidn’tanalyzemywritingverywell.Liketheteachersjustgavemegoodgradesandtheyreallydidn’tmarkituporsayevenifitwasgood.Theydidn’tsayIcoulddobetter.”

Interview#2–Lily

“I’llwanttospendtimeactuallycritiquingtheirwritingandactuallygivingthemsolidfeedbacktohelpthemgetbetterinsteadofjustgivingthemagoodorbadgradeandnottellingthemwhy.Ithinkalotofteachersinthepastdidthatanditdidn’thelpalot.”

Interview#2–Lily

“Iwillneverputdownakid.Ifyou’reputtingyourselfoutthereasawriteryou’realreadyinavulnerablestatebecauseyouareputtingyourthoughtsonpaper.Ifakidistrying,hemaynotbethereatall,butatleastifhe’strying,applaudthefactthathetried.It’safirststep.”

Interview#2–Kay

“Feedbackandknowinggoodgrammer[sic]helpsstudentshaveconfidenceintheirreadingandwriting.”

Journal‐Sydney

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Table6Continued “Givefeedback.Havingstudentswritesomething,collectingit,andneverdoinganythingwithitiscompletelyuseless.Practicewon’tbebeneficialiftheyaredoingitwrong.”

Focusgroup

“WhenateacherhandsmebackapaperwithaCorevenaDonitandonlyputthat,nofeedback,I’mlikewhattheheck.Yougavemethisbadgrade,butnofeedback,soIcan’tlearnfromthemistakesIdidmake.”

Focusgroup

“Theteacher’sroleinteachingwritingshouldbereallyfocusedongivingconstructivefeedback.Kidslearntowritebywriting,soIwillhavethemwriteandthenreallytakethetimetogothroughtheirworkandcommendthegoodthingswhilegivingsuggestionsonhowtoimproveotherthingsfornexttime.”

Focusgroup

“Iwishteacherswouldletstudentssharetheirwritingwitheachotherandgetfeedback.”

Focusgroup

“Ithinkmywritingneversoundsgood,butIdon’treallyknowwhattodoaboutit.”

Focusgroup

“SometimesIwonderediftheyreadit.Icouldtellbywhereitwasstapledandtherewasn’tevenafold.”

Focusgroup

OfferingChoiceinWritingTopics Likewise,themajorityoftheparticipantsmentionedchoiceasimportant.

Amberwastheonlyexceptionwhostatedshepreferredtohavetopicsassigned.

Studentsoverwhelminglybelievedthatitiseasierandmoreenjoyabletowrite

aboutatopicthatyouhadchosenorwasinsomewayrelevantormeaningfulto

theirlifeorcareer.Assignedtopicswereassociatedwithtermssuchas“chore,”

drudgery,”and“dread.”Mostindicatedthatchoicewasdirectlylinkedmaking

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writingfunandenjoyable,anotherprominenttheme.Theconceptofchoicerelated

toboththestudentaswriterandthestudentasfuturewritingteacher.Themajority

ofthestudentsindicatedtheywouldgivechoiceintopicsintheirownclassrooms.

Table7.ChoiceQuote SourceandParticipant(if

known)“Theworstthingawritingteachercandoisforcestudentstowriteaboutthingsthatarenotmeaningful.”

Questionnaire–Sydney

“Teachersshouldgivestudentsthechoiceofmeaningful,authenticexperienceswhenitcomestowritingassignments.”


“Myteachersdidagoodjobwhentheyletusbecreativeandpickourowntopics.I’vealwaysfounditmucheasiertowriteextensivelyonatopicachosethantowriteonatopicassignedtome.”


“Writingisbetterwhenyouhavemorefreedomtoexploretopicsthatareofinteresttoyou.”

Questionnaire–Gina

“WritingiseasyandfunifIgetchoosewhatIwriteaboutorit’ssomethingthatinterestsme.”

Interview#1–Lily

“Givingstudentschoicemakeswritinglessofachore.”

Interview#2–Kay

“Youdon’tmindspendingalotoftimeonit.Itjusttakesthedrudgeryoutofit.”

Interview#2–Lily

“Ifyoucangetstudentstoconnectwiththingstheyareinterestedin,theywillenjoywritingmore.”

Interview#2–Amber

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Table7Continued “WritingissomucheasierwhenyoucareaboutthetopicandwhenIcantakeresponsibilityforwhatI’mwritingabout.”

Focusgroup

“IfIcareaboutthetopic,thewritingcomeseasytome.”

Focusgroup

MakingWritingFun/Enjoyable/HavinganEnthusiasticTeacher Alloftheparticipantsmentionedthatwritingshouldbeafunactivity,not

somethingtodreadorfear.Studentsbelievedthatenjoymentwasdirectlylinkedto

havingchoiceinwritingtopics.Therewasmuchoverlapontheconceptofchoice

andmakingwritingfunandenjoyable.Likewise,studentwholearnedfromteachers

whowereenthusiasticaboutwritingtendedtoenjoywritingmore.Studentssaid

theywouldmakeeffortstomakewritinginstructionfuntopromotepositive

attitudesaboutwritingfortheirfuturestudents.Likewise,theybelieveditwas

importantforteacherstohaveasincereenthusiasmforwriting.

Table8.MakingWritingFun/Enjoyable/HavinganEnthusiasticTeacherQuote SourceandParticipant(if

known)“Iwishmyinstructorswouldofferfunandexcitingwaystopracticemywritingskills.”


“Irememberwritingbeingapunishmentinsteadofafunactivity.”


“Theworstthingateachercandoismakewritingboring.”


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Table8Continued “Thebestwritingteachersalwaysgointoclasswithapositiveattitudeaboutwriting.”


“Myteachersjustweren’tstimulatinginterest.Weretheyjustnotexcitedaboutwriting?Theyneversaidthingslikethisisgonnabeafunpapertowriteorletuschooseourtopics.”

Interview#1–Mary

“Ithinkteacherssometimesmakeitseemlikeokay,nowwe’regonnawrite,andit’sthishugedealandsoitmakesthestudentsfeellikeit’ssomethingtobefearedorthisbigchallengingthingtodo,butitshouldn’tfeelthatwaytostudents.”

Interview#1–Amber

“Don’tmakewritingallaboutrightandwrong.Findawaytoincorporatewritinginfunways.”

Interview#2–Gina

“It’salwayseasywhenIdothingslikeopinionpiecesoraboutsubjectsI’minterestedin.LikewhenIgettochooseatopic.It’seasytowriteaboutsomethingthatyoulike.”

Interview#2–Lily

“Thebestwritingteachershavealotofenthusiasmaboutwritinganddon’tjustcometotheclassandsayhere’stheprompt,gowriteaboutit.”


“Everystudentwilllearnifyoumakeitfun.”

Interview#2–Kay

“Whendecidingonwhethersomethingisbusyworkorhomework,youshouldaskyourselfsomequestionsfirst:Willthestudent’s[sic]benefitorwilltheyjustbeboard[sic]?”

Journal–Sydney

“Iwanttohelpstudentslovewritingbylettingthemwriteabouttheirownlives.”

Focusgroup

“Iwanttokeepmystudentsfromthinkingwritingisascary,horriblething.

Focusgroup

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ProvidingAdequateInstructioninWritingFoundations,Skill,andGrammar Alloftheparticipantsnotedthatknowinggrammarandthefoundational

skillsofwritingwerecriticaltosuccessbothasawriterandateacher.Butmanyfelt

theywereill‐preparedforcollege‐levelwriting.Manystudentsstatedthatthey

lackedmanyofthegrammarbasicsandlamentedthattherewerenotmore

opportunitiestolearnandpracticethem.Likewise,severalstudentsexpressly

statedthattheyhadnotbeentaughthowtoreviseandeditpapers.Thelackofthis

basicknowledgehinderedtheirconfidenceinwriting.Whilethereluctantand

emergingwritersstatedthattheywouldlikemorecoursesingrammarand

foundations,notably,theconfidentwritersthoughtthiswasimportantand

welcomedmoreopportunitiestolearnandpractice.

Table9.Foundations,Skills,andGrammarQuote SourceandParticipant(if

known)“IfeellikeIhavebadgrammar.Ijustneverlearnedit.SoI’mprettybadwithit.Ifyouaskedmeaquestionaboutwhatarethedifferentpartsofspeech,Iwouldn’tknow.”

Interview#1–Lily

“Grammardoesmatter.Itshowsyourintelligence.” Interview#1–Sadie “ThewritingIhadinhighschooldidn’treallypreparemeforcollege.”

Interview#1–Sadie

“IfeellikenowifIdidhaveinstruction,IguessIwouldalwaysbethinkingabouthowIneedtotakelongeronmypapersandstarteditingthemandsendthemtosomeoneelsetolookover.”


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Table9Continued “I’llshowwaysofdoingitthatarestep‐by‐stepwhojustcan’tsitdownandwritebecauseIcan’tdothat.”

Interview#2–Amber

“Grammarlessonsweredifficultgrowingup,butIthinkthathelpedimmensely.Knowingthebasicsandhavingthefoundationstobeagoodwritermadewritingassignmentsnotoverlydifficultbecauseweknewthefoundations.”

Interview#2–Gina

“Tocommunicateeffectively,ateachermustbeknowledgeableaboutthecorrectuseofgrammar...ateachermustputeffortintodevelopinghisorhergrammarskills.Weaseducatorsneedtomakesurethatwespeakandwritecorrectlytoupholdourcredibility.”

Journal–Mary

“Whenyouteachyourstudentsgrammer[sic],youarebuildingthemtohaveconfidenceintheirreading,writingandspeaking.Grammer[sic]isthebaseofEnglishandifwewantourstudentstosucceedinschoolnomatterwhatsubjecttheyfirstneedtolearngrammer[sic].”

Journal–Sydney

“UnderstandinggrammartranslatestounderstandinggrammartranslatestounderstandinghowtheEnglishlanguageworks,soifwearetoteachthenextgenerationtospeakandwriteproperly,wemustbeabletodosoaswell.”

Journal–Amber

AllowingAdequateTimeforWritingPractice Studentsacknowledgedthatthebestwaytobecomeaproficientwriterwas

byhavingtheopportunitytopracticeregularly.Whetherinungradedjournalsor

formalpapers,studentsstatedthatfrequentandregularopportunitiestowriteled

tosuccess.Allofthestudentsstatedthattheywouldcarrythisforwardintheirown

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classroomseveniftheyhadnothadtheopportunitytodosoduringtheir

educationaljourney.

Table10.PracticeQuote SourceandParticipant(if

known)“Thebestthingawritingteachercandoisprovidelotsofwritingopportunities.”


“Youjusthavetopracticealot.Youhavetoworkatit.”

Interview#1–Lily

“It’sreallyjustahabitforme.IliketowriteandIdoitalot.”

Interview#1–Mary

“Learningwriting,youknow,it’srepetition,repetition.”

Interview#2–Kay

“Iwritealot.It’scommonsense–themoreyoudoit,thebetteryouget.”

Interview#2‐Gina

“I’mnotverystrongatit[writing]andIneedtopracticeitmore.”

Interview#2–Sadie

“Kidslearntowritebywriting,soIwillhavethemwrite.”

Interview#2–Amber

“Partofitisjustpractice.”

Focusgroup

“I’dmakewritingpartofthelearningeveryday.Itmightbejournalsorletters,buteveryday.”

Focusgroup

“Ijustdon’trememberspendingmuchtimewritingwhenIwasinelementaryschool.”

Focusgroup

“I’vewrittenfewerpapersincollege,soIhaven’thadmuchopportunitytoenhancemyskills.”

Focusgroup

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Table10Continued “Theyneedlotsofpracticeinalow‐keysetting.” Focusgroup “Theonlywayyougetbetteristopractice,practice,practice.”

Focusgroup

HelpingStudentsUnderstandthe“Why”ofWriting Someofthestudentsindicateditwasimportantforstudentstounderstand

the“why”ofwriting.Interestingly,thereluctantandemergingwritersstatedthis

wasakeyissuetheywouldaddressinwritinginstructionintheirclassrooms.This

couldbeaccomplishedbyallowingtheirstudentstoengageinreal‐worldwriting

opportunitiesormakeconnectionstothedifferentpurposesofwriting.Giving

studentsauthenticwritingexperiencesallowedgreaterenjoymentaswell.Thiswas

aconcepttheparticipantsplannedtotakeforwardintotheirfutureclassrooms.

Table11.Understandingthe“Why”ofWritingQuote Sourceandparticipant(if

known)“Takethetimetoreallytalktotheirstudentsaboutwhatitmeanstobeagoodwriterandwhyitissoimportantthatwehavethoseskills.”

Questionnaire–Sydney

“Teachersshouldtrytohelpbuildanappreciationforwritingsoitshouldn’tbescaryorhorrible.”

Interview#1‐Gina

“Givestudentsthewhy–whydoIneedtodothis?” Interview#1–Sadie “Makeitfunandsomethingthattheyneedtoknowforthefuturesoit’sapplicablefortheirlife.”

Interview#2–Lily

“Makewritingapplicableforreal‐lifesituationsandnotjustwritingfortheteacher.”

Interview#2‐Sadie

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Table11Continued “Idon’tthinkstudentsthinkaboutwhytheywrite.Youpassanotetoyourcrushingradeschool.Youtakenotesinclass.Youfillinatest,writeato‐dolist,andaddressandsignaValentine.”

Journal‐Gina

“It’sahugepartofit–showingyourstudentsawidevarietyofpurposesthatwritingserves.Iftheyknowtheywilluseaskilllaterinlife,theywillbemorelikelytolearnit.”

Focusgroup

“Sharethepurposeofwritingwithauthenticexperiences.”

Focusgroup

ChapterSummary

Thischapteroutlinedindetailtheresponsesanddatacollectedforeach

participantinthecontextoftheresearchquestions:(1)Howdopreserviceteachers

perceiveandpracticethewritingprocess?,(2)Whatexperiencesshapedtheir

attitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting?,and(3)Howdopreserviceteachers’viewsof

theprocessinformtheirthinkingaboutteachingwriting?Threecategoriesof

writingattitudesemerged:reluctant,emerging,andconfidentwriters.Thedatawas

presentedfromtheperspectiveofparticipantaswriterandparticipantasfuture

writingteacher.Fromthat,6themesemergedassignificantandinfluentialinthe

developmentofwritingattitudesandbeliefs:feedback,choice,fun/enjoyment,and

enthusiasticwritingteachers,grammarandfoundationalskills,practice,and

understandingthe“why”ofwriting.Inchapter5,Iwillconnectthedatapresented

andthemestotheresearchandmakerecommendationsastotheimplicationsfor

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teachereducationprograms.Finally,Iwillconcludewithsuggestionsforfuture

areasofresearch.

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CHAPTERFIVE‐CONCLUSION

“Writingishardwork.Aclearsentenceisnoaccident...Ifyoufindthatwritingishard,it’sbecauseitishard.”(Zinsser,2006,p.9).

Thisstudyexploredtheformationandinfluencesofwritingattitudesand

beliefsandhowtheywouldimpactwritinginstructioninfutureclassroomsfor

sevenpreserviceteachers.Theparticipants’confidencelevelsaboutwritingranged

fromreluctanttoemergingtoconfident.Thisstudywasframedbythreeresearch

questionsandconcludedwiththesixthemesthatemergedwhichplayedarolein

thedevelopmentoftheirattitudesandbeliefsandintheirfutureclassrooms:(a)

providingexplicitandmeaningfulfeedback,(b)offeringchoiceinwritingtopics,(c)

makingwritingfun,enjoyable,andpossessinganenthusiasmforthesubject,(d)

providingadequateinstructioninwritingfoundations,skill,andgrammar,(e)

allowingadequatetimeforwritingpractice,and(f)helpingstudentsunderstanding

the“why”ofwriting.Althoughtherewassomenaturaloverlapbetweenthese

categories,thethemesweredistinct.

ApprenticeshipofObservationandSituatedLearning

Lortie’s(1975)apprenticeshipofobservationandLaveandWenger’s(1991)

situatedlearningprovideacontextforunderstandingthesethemeswithinasocial

constructivismframework.Whenastudentconsidersafuturecareerpath,many

factorsshapethedecision.Achildmayaspiretobecomeaphysicianordentist

becauseofpositiveinteractionswithhisorherhealthcareprovider.Likewise,a

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familymemberinaparticularprofessionmayplayaroleinthedecision‐making

process.Someonemightchooseafield,suchasthelaworjournalism,basedupon

televisionshowsormovies.Butunlikeanyotherprofession,thechoicetobecomea

teacherbringswithitroughly12yearsofacademicexperiencewithpasteducators.

Whetherornotstudentsareaware,theyhavebeenengagedinthe“apprenticeship

ofobservation”oftheprofessionoverthelifespanoftheirschoolcareer(Lortie,

1975,p.1).Thisinfluence,bothdirectandindirect,playsakeyroleintheattitudes

andbeliefsstudentsholdaboutparticularsubjectsandlearningaswellastheway

theywillultimatelyapproachteachingit.Ofcourse,theeffectsmayhavebeen

positive,negative,orsomecombinationofthetwo.

LaveandWenger(1991)expandedthenotionoftheapprenticeship.The

socialpracticeofeducationisnecessarilyapartoftheclassroom.Althoughthe

learningcanrelatetospecificactivities,itisalsopartofthelargernotionofsocial

communities(Lave&Wenger,1991,p.53).Inmasteringknowledgeandjoining

communitiesofpractice,studentsengageintheprocessof“legitimateperipheral

participation”(LLP)(Lave&Wenger,1991,p.29).Thisparticipationisbasedon

“situatednegotiationandrenegotiationofmeaningintheworld”(Lave&Wenger,

1991,p.51).

InconsideringtheintersectionoftheoriesbyLortie(1975)andLaveand

Wenger(1991)regardingthedevelopmentofteachercandidates,thesestudents

havebeenobserversandparticipantsinallofthepreviousclassroomsthroughout

theirschooling.Thosesubtle,nuancedinteractionsgentlyshapedandmoldedthe

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students’attitudes,beliefs,andapproachtotheoveralleducationalprocessaswell

asspecificsubjects.

Inthecontextofwritinginstruction,thisapprenticeshipandcommunityof

practice,knowinglyorunknowingly,invitesstudentstoassimilatetheirmentors’

attitudesandbeliefs(Lave&Wenger,1991,Lortie,1975).Teachers’attitudesand

beliefsaboutwritingplayadistinctroleinthedevelopmentofhowastudentfeels

abouttheprocessandpracticeofthecraft(Brooks,2007;Graves,1990;Daisey,

2009;Street&Stang,2009).Thesecollectiveexperiences,whichmayhavebeen

positive,negative,orindifferent,ultimatelyshapeapreserviceteacher’sthoughts

aboutwriting(Hall&Grisham‐Brown,2014).AsGreenleaf,Jimenez,&Roller(2002)

soaptlystated:“teachersdon’tjustappearoutofthinair.Theyaretheproducts–as

wellasactiveagents–oftheworldsfromwhichtheycame”(p.487).

Whenstudentsentertheuniversity,theattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting

thatwereformedthroughouttheiracademiccareersfollowthem(Florio‐Ruane&

Lensmire,1990;Lortie,1975).Theywillhaveadirectimpactonhowfuture

teachersapproachwritinginstruction(Dart,Bouton‐Lewis,Brownless,&McCrindle,

1998;Whitney&Friedrich,2013).Thesethoughtswillbeapartofevery

instructionaldecision(Lortie,1975).

Mypurposeinthischapteristodiscernhowtheparticipantsassimilated

theseattitudesandbeliefsaboutwritingduringtheirapprenticeshipsand

communitiesofpracticeandtosuggesthowthiswillinformtheirfutureteachingof

writing.Inaddition,mygoalistomakerecommendationsregardinghowteacher

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educationprogramscansupportwritersatallstagesofdevelopmentandfoster

improvedself‐confidenceandcompetenceinwriting.Finally,Isuggestareasfor

futureresearch.

MeaningfulFeedback

Feedbackwasoneofthemostsignificantthemesthatemergedinthisstudy

forboththestudentandthefuturewritingteacher.Frustrationwasacommon

sentimentregardingthequalityandamountoffeedbackprovidedbyprevious

teachers.Forthewriterswhoselevelsofself‐confidencewerereluctantor

emerging,thiswasparticularlytroubling.Theysimplydidnotknowwhattheywere

doingincorrectlyorhowtoimprove.Ateacher’sexperiencewithwritingwillhavea

significantinfluenceonhowheorsheapproacheswritinginstruction(Street&

Stand,2009).Ambercalleditthe“numberonethingthatfrustratedmeinhigh

schoolandcollege.”Regardlessofthequalityofthefinalproduct,“evenonanA

paper,”Amberstatedthatameaningfulcritiquecouldalwaysbeprovided.

Additionally,reluctantwriters,suchasSydney,statedthatfeedbackrequiredmore

thanjustagrade.Inherhighschoolherteacherssimply“didn’tcare.”Verbal

commentsandsocialcuesprovidepositiveandnegativefeedback,whichhavea

directimpactonastudent’sattitudesandbeliefs(Parajes,2003).Sydneyfelt

frustratedbythelackoffeedbackbecauseshedidn’tknowwhatmistakesshewas

makingorhowtofixthem.Students’writinghistoriesinfluencehowthey“engage

withandenactthesepractices”asteachers(Hawkins&Razali,2012,p.305).

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However,theconfidentwriterslamentedaboutmarginalornon‐existent

feedbackaswell.Althoughstudentswhoseattitudesandbeliefswereshapedby

successfulexperiencestendtofeelmorepositiveaboutwriting(Chambless&Bass,

1995;Colby&Stapleton,2006),thewayinwhichtheyweretaughtwillstillhavean

influence(Street&Stang,2009).Lilyfeltcheatedbecauseherpastteachers“just

gave[her]goodgradesanddidn’tanalyze[her]writingverywell.”Asaresult,her

higherlevelsofwritingconfidencewereincongruentwithheractualwritingability.

Havingreceivedpapersinhercollegeclasseswith“A’s”or“NiceJob!”atthetop,Lily

believedshewasacompetentwriter;however,whenherwritingwascritically

examined,itfailedtomeetthestandardofclearprose.Consequently,Lilyfeltshort‐

changedandmisledbyteacherfeedback.Buteventhemostconfidentwriter,Mary,

foundittroublingwhenteachers“leterrorsslide.”Maryactuallywonderedifthese

teacherscouldnotcorrectthemistakesbecausetheydidnotknowthe

fundamentalsofgrammarthemselves.Toeffectivelyteachwriting,teachersmustbe

writersthemselves(Draper,Barksdale‐Ladd,&Radencich,2000).Itisquitepossible

thatLilyandMaryhadteacherswholackedwritingskillsorconfidenceto

adequatelyassessastudent’swrittenwork.Manyteachersfeelunpreparedor

under‐preparedtoteachwriting(Daisey,2009).

Itwasinterestingtonotethatalloftheparticipantsarticulatedthatthey

plannedtogivedetailedfeedbackasteachers.Perceptionsoffeedbackdependona

student’smindsetaboutwriting(Norman&Spencer,2005).Studentswhoview

writingabilityasfixedconsiderfeedbackunhelpful,non‐supportive,andpunitive

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(Norman&Spencer,2005).Incontrast,studentswhobelievedwritingabilitywas

flexiblefoundfeedbackandencouragementhelpedtheirwritingimprove(Norman

&Spencer,2005).Inthisstudyeventhemostreluctantwriter,Sadie,statedthat

providingmeaningfulresponsestostudentwritingwas“themostimportantthinga

teachercando”andindicatedshewilldosoinherownclassroom.However,tobe

meaningful,theparticipantsagreedthatitmustbemorethantheassaultofthered

pen.Itmustbeabalanceofconstructivecriticismthathelpsthewriterunderstand

themistakesandlearnfromthem,butthatalsoprovidespositivereinforcementon

theaspectswhichweredonewell.Wordssuchasbeingavailable,takingthetime,

andexplainingwhattheydidwrongwereconsistentrefrainsinhowallofthem

plannedtoapproachthetask.Thispositiveviewoffeedbackforallparticipants

appearedconsistentwiththeimprovedlevelsofself‐confidenceasevidencedbythe

increaseineachstudent’ssecondWATscore.

Althoughmostofthesestudentsdidnotfeeltheyhadreceivedadequate

feedbackintheirpre‐collegeyears,movingforward,allofthemplannedtomakeita

priorityasteachers.Sydney,oneofthemostreluctantwriters,specificallystated

thatthefeedbackprovidedthissemesterinEDU330hadadramaticimpactonthe

improvementofherwritingandlevelofconfidence.AccordingtoStreet(2003),

writingattitudescanbechangedbycoursesthatfosterpositiveoutcomeswith

writing.Afuturestudycouldfollowthisgroupofparticipantsafterthreetofive

yearsofteachingtoseeiftheycontinuetoprovideextensivefeedbackforwriting.

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Choice

Studentsoverwhelminglydeemedchoiceinwritingtopicsasinfluentialin

theirattitudesaswritersandasfuturewritingteachers.AccordingtoNormanand

Spencer(2005),thechoiceofrelevantandmeaningfultopicsplayedapowerfulrole

indevelopingpositivewritingattitudes.Wordssuchasdrudgeryandboring

describedexperienceswithtopicsthatweremandatory.Amberadmittedthatwhen

facedwithawritingassignment,herfirstthoughtswere,“Ugh,whydowehaveto

dothisandhowlongdoesithavetobe?”Thisheldtrueforboththereluctantand

confidentparticipants.Oneofthereluctantwriters,Sadie,saidshelikedwritingin

“journalsorcreativewriting,”butdidn’tenjoyhavingtodomore“formalpapers.”

Likewise,Sydneyappreciatedthelow‐stakesdailyjournalwritinginelementary

school.

Notably,alloftheconfidentstudentswroteforpleasure.Kayenjoyed“the

creativesideofwriting,”suchassonglyrics.LilyandGinaappreciatedjournaland

letterwriting.ForGina,writingwasalsoawaytoclarifyherthinking.“Without

writing,Iwouldbelostinaworldofchaos,”shesaid.Marywasanavidcreative

writerandformerEnglishmajor.Allofthesestudentsclearlyexpressedthatthey

choosetowriteintheirpersonallives.However,intermsofassignments,theydid

appreciatetheopportunitytochoosemeaningfultopics.Lilycharacterizedheronly

negativeexperienceashavingtowritea10‐pagegovernmentpaper“aboutaboring

topicthatIcarednothingabout.”WhenKaywastaskedwithwritingaboutatopic

forwhichshe“hasnostrongopinions,”herwritingwasweakbecauseshetendsto

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use“fillers.”Maryexplicitlystatedherpreferenceforchoiceoftopics,butcould

“findwaystotweakittostimulateinterest.”

Amber,theemergingwriter,wastheonlyexception.Shepreferredthe

structureofarequiredtopictoknowwhatshewas“supposedtobewritingabout.”

Amber“wasn’tgoodatcomingupwithideas.”

Indiscussingtheirfutureclassrooms,thenotionofchoicewasnearly

universalanddirectlyrelatedtothethemeofmakingwritingfunandenjoyable.

Teacherattitudeswilldirectlyinfluencetheapproachtowritinginstruction

(McCarthey&Mkhize,2013).Sydneyunequivocallystated,“Theworstthinga

writingteachercandoisforcestudentstowriteaboutthingsthatarenot

meaningful.”Buteventhemostconfidentwritersagreedthatchoicemadethetask

easier.Maryfoundit“mucheasiertowriteextensively”onatopicshehadchosen.

Lilysummeditupsuccinctly:“Ifyouhaveachoiceintopicsyoudon’tmind

spendingalotoftimeonit.Itjusttakesthedrudgeryoutofit.”

AlthoughAmberdidnotexplicitlyindicatethatchoicewouldbeimportantin

herfutureclassroom,shestateditwouldbehelpfulto“connect[writing]withthings

theyarealreadyinterestedin.”Thiswouldmakestudents“moreinclinedtolearn

andpracticenow.”Asanoutlierinthisstudy,itwouldbeinterestingtofollow

Amberasasinglecasestudyasshetransitionsintoherownclassroom.

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MakingWritingFun,Enjoyable,andPossessingEnthusiasm

Linkeddirectlytothemeofchoicewasthenotionthatwritingshouldbefun

andenjoyable.Studentsstatedthathavingchoicemadewritingamorepositive

experience.Embeddedwithinthisthemewasthethoughtthatteachersshould

possessasincereenthusiasmforwriting.Studentshaveabetterchanceofbecoming

“successful,enthusiastic,andengagedreadersandwriterswhentheylearnfrom

andareamongteacherswhodisplaythesametraits”(Brooks,2007,p.177).

AccordingtoNormanandSpencer(2005),teacherswhoare“enthusiastic,

supportive,andencouraging”aboutwritinghaveapowerfulinfluenceoverthe

attitudesandbeliefstheirstudentsholdaboutthesubject(p.30).

Inthisstudy,studentshadawiderangeofpastexperienceswithwriting.

Gina,aconfidentwriter,hadoverwhelminglypositiveexperiences.Studentswhose

attitudesandbeliefswereshapedbysuccessfulexperienceswithwritingwill

generallyhavemorepositiveattitudestowardwriting(Chambless&Bass,1995;

Colby&Stapleton,2006).“Ihadteacherswhowerepositiveaboutthewriting

experience,”Ginasaid.Incontrast,Sadie,oneofthereluctantwriters,usedterms

suchasdread,punishment,anddifficulttodescribeherrelationshipwithwriting.“I

rememberwritingasbeingmoreofapunishment,”Sadiesaid.Thislackofwriting

confidencewillinformherapproachtowritinginstruction(Colby&Stapleton,

2006).

Intermsofteachingwriting,itwasclearthatthemajorityoftheparticipants

wantedtomakethetaskanenjoyableexperience.Thereluctantwriters,Sadieand

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Sydney,agreedthatthebestwritingteachersmakewritingfun.Sydneydirectly

linkedthelevelofenjoymenttochoice.Inaddition,Sydneybelievedthebestwriting

teacherswereenthusiastic.Inaddition,theconfidentstudents,whoalreadyenjoy

theprocessofwriting,statedthatmakingwritingfunandenjoyablewouldbea

priority.AccordingtoLily,thefailuretodosomadethetaska“chore.”LikeSydney,

LilyandMaryarticulatedadirectlinkbetweenfunandchoiceinwritingtopics.For

Gina,findingwhatinterestsherstudentswouldmakewritingmoreenjoyable‐‐for

example,incorporatingblankcomicbookpages.GinaandMary,themostconfident

andcompetentwriters,displayedsuchanauthenticenthusiasmforwritingthatit

willunquestionablypermeatetheirclassrooms.Teacherswhoarecomfortablein

theprocessofwritingandareactuallywritersthemselveswillbethemosteffective

writingteachers(Bratcher&Stroble,1994).

InstructioninFoundations,Skills,andGrammar

Allofthestudentsstatedunequivocallythathavingadequatepreparationin

thefoundationallanguageelementsandgrammarwasabsolutelycriticalforthemas

writersandasfutureteachers.Yetseveralstudents,bothreluctantandconfident,

knewtheirwritingskillswereanemicwhentheyenteredtheuniversity.

Sadiechalkedupherinstructionaslittlemorethanaseriesofworksheets,

whichshe“hated”anddeemed“useless.”WhileSydneyknewhergrammarand

spellingskillswerelacking,shealsohadlittleinstructioninhowtoreviseandedit

herwork.Kay,aconfidentwriter,didn’thaveastrongbackgroundingrammaror

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thefundamentals.Athoroughunderstandingoftheintricaciesandconventionsof

theEnglishlanguageisessentialforteachers(Graham,Harris,Fink,&MacArthur,

2001;Lavelle,2006).Asawriter,Lilydidn’t“knowasmuchas[she]should.”

Kaydidn’thavemuchgrammarinschoolandwonderedifitwasbecauseher

teachers“weren’tconfidentinit.”Likewise,Maryquestionedwhethersomeofher

elementaryandhighschoolteachershadaworkingknowledgeoftheconventionsof

theEnglishlanguage.Marydeemedahavingknowledgeofgrammaressentialtoan

educator’s“credibility.”Manyprofessionalscurrentlyinthefieldexpressconcerns

thattheirteachertrainingprogramsdidnotadequatelypreparethemforwriting

instruction(Chambless&Bass,1995;Daisey,2009;Martin&Dismuke,2015;

Morgan,2010;Tulley,2013).TheNationalWritingProjecthasattemptedtomitigate

thisproblembyofferingintensiveprofessionaldevelopmentinwritingskillsand

practicesince1974forcurrentpractitioners(NationalWritingProject,2015).

However,notallcurrentteachershavetheabilityorarewillingtoparticipate.

Attheinstitutionwherethisstudywasconducted,itispossibleforastudent

toenterwithAdvancedPlacement(AP)creditforWRIT101.Likewise,ascoreof28

orgreaterontheEnglishportionoftheACTexemptsastudentfromWRIT101.

Consequently,thismeansthatastudentcouldattendfouryearsattheuniversity

withoutbeingrequiredtotakeacollege‐levelwritingcourse.Inthisstudy,Amber

wasexemptfromWRIT101basedonherACTEnglishscore.Whilethisistroubling

foralluniversitystudents,thisisespeciallyproblematicforfutureteachers,who

shouldbewell‐versedingrammarandwritingfoundations.

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Asfutureteachersofwriting,alloftheparticipantsacknowledgedthatthey

needtobecomfortablewithwritingfundamentals.Yet,teachereducationprograms

continuetoplaceminimalornoemphasisonwritingpedagogy(Hall&Grisham‐

Brown,2014).Furthermore,thereislittleconsistencyinprogramsacrossthenation

regardingtheamountofwritingrequired(Chambless&Bass,2010;Daisey,2009;

Tulley,2013).Ginacommentedthatshe“didn’tfeelliketherewasapushforusto

teachkidstowrite.”WithintheDepartmentofEducation,EDU263Methodsof

TeachingGrammarremainslistedinthescheduleofclasses.However,ithasnot

beenavailableforstudentstotakeaspartoftheirteachertrainingsince2012.

Mostprogramssimplydonotrequireastand‐alonecourseinwriting

principlesandpedagogy(Norman&Spencer,2005).ButastheNationalWriting

Projectsovividlydemonstrated,thereisclearlyaneedformorerequiredwriting

courseworkinteachertrainingprograms(NationalWritingProject,2015).Inthis

study,themorereluctantstudentsstatedtheywillneedtocontinueworkingto

improvetheirskilllevelinordertobeeffectiveteachers.

Practice

Foundationalskillsarecritical,buthavingtimetopracticewritingisalsoof

theutmostimportance.Theonlywaytoimprovewritingskills,atanylevel,is

throughwritingregularly(Colby&Stapleton,2006).Becomingabetterwriter

simplyrequiresbeingactivelyengagedintheprocessofwriting(Bratcher&Stroble,

1994;Colby&Stapleton,2006;Shofel,1991).TheNationalCommissiononWriting

135

(2003)deemedallottingadequatetimeforwritinginstructionasparamount.

Acommonrefrainfromparticipantsunderscoredthenecessityofpracticeat

thecollegelevel.AsKaysaid,“Learningwriting,youknow,it’srepetition,

repetition.”Lilysaidtheresimplyhadn’tbeenmuchopportunityforpractice.“I

haven’twrittenalotincollegeandIdon’tknowwhy,”shesaid.Theparticipants

weregenuinelycuriousandconcernedwhythereweresofewmeaningfulwriting

assignments,coupledwithpreciseandhelpfulfeedback,inaprogramthatwas

designedtopreparefutureteachers.Inthefocusgroup,oneofthestudents

wondered,“Idon’tknowhowcanIteachsomethingIdon’tknow.”However,the

participantsnotedthatpracticewouldbeakeycomponentintheirfuture

classrooms.AccordingtoLily,“Thebestthingawritingteachercandoisprovide

lotsofwritingopportunities.”Asfutureteachers,practiceintheirclassroomswould

befrequent,indifferentformatssuchas“journalsandletters,”andbebothformal

papersaswellas“low‐stakes”assignments.

Butpracticetakesonauniquemeaningforfutureteachers.Toteachwriting

effectively,teachersmustbewritersthemselves(Bratcher&Strobe,2010;Colby&

Stapleton,2006,Morgan,2010;NationalCommissiononWriting&Nagin,2003,

Street,2003;Street&Stang,2009).Morgan(2010)concludedthatteachersmust

writetofullyunderstandandexperiencetheprocess.Inthisway,teacherscan

betterhelpstudentsunderstandandnavigatethechallengesandstrugglesof

writing(Augsburger,1998).Murray(2003)arguedthatteachersmust“understand

thewritingprocessfromwithin”(p.74).AsAugsburger(1998),Bloom(1990),and

136

Morgan(2010)concurred,byexperiencingthejoys,struggles,andfrustrationsof

writingfirst‐hand,teachersareabletocomprehendandempathizewiththeir

students.Smith(1983)stateditwasdifficult,ifnotimpossible,tosharethiscrucial

underlyingknowledgeoftheprocessofwritingwithoutexperiencingitdirectly.

Understandingthe“Why”ofWriting

Intheparticipants’futureclassrooms,thefinalthemethatemergedwas

helpingstudentsunderstandthe“why”ofwriting.AccordingtoSmith(1983),

teachersmust“showchildrenthatwritingisinteresting,possible,andworthwhile”

(p.566).AccordingtoGallagher(2011),studentsmustfullycomprehend“whythey

shouldwrite”(p.7).Withoutthisbasicunderstanding,studentswillseenotsee

writingasameaningfulandworthwhileactivity(Daisey,2009;Gallagher,2011).

Instead,theywillregardthetaskasmerelyunavoidable(Daisey,2009;Gallagher,

2011).Effectivewritingteacherssharenotonlytheprocessofwritingand

mechanics,butalsowhytheyvaluewriting(Augsburger,1998;Bloom,1990;

Cremin,2006;Gallagher,2011;Morgan,2010).

Afewoftheparticipantsexpressedtheimportanceofmakingsuretheir

studentsunderstoodthisissue.Lilyplannedtohelpherstudentsknowthatwriting

is“applicablefortheirli[ves]”.Eventhemostreluctantwriter,Sadie,foundthis

critical.Sheintendedto“makewritingapplicableforreal‐lifesituationsandnotjust

fortheteacher.”Ginasuggestedthatstudentsrarely“thinkaboutwhytheywrite”

andplanstoaddressthatinhercurriculum.

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Recommendations

Whenexaminingthedatacollectedinthisstudy,itwasclearthatallofthe

participants’attitudesandbeliefs,whichspannedthespectrum,hadbeenshapedby

their“apprenticeshipofobservation”(Lortie,1975,p.1)andtheir“situated

negotiationandrenegotiationofmeaningintheworld”(Lave&Wenger,1991,p.

51).Consequently,thesestudentscametotheirteachereducationprogramafter“a

processthattakesplaceinaparticipationframework,notinanindividualmind”

(Lave&Wenger,1991,p.15).Ineveryfirst‐yearTortsclass,lawstudentslearnthe

adage,“youtaketheplaintiffasyoufindher.”Thesamecouldbesaidofourteacher

candidates:Theycometouswithdifferentdegreesofwritingself‐efficacy,varied

foundationalknowledgeandskillability,andawiderangeofeducational

experiencesandinfluences.Whetherornotastudentisaware,thesepreviously

formedattitudes,beliefs,andexperiencesaccompanythem(Florio‐Ruane&

Lensmire,1990;Lortie,1975;Palmer,2012).Whilestudentsmayfailtograspthis

notion,teachereducationprogramsmustnotonlyacknowledgethesestark

realities,buttakeaffirmativestepstoaddresstheconcerns.FutureK–8studentsof

ourgraduatesdeservenothingless.

Thesixthemesthatemergedinthisstudy,(a)providingexplicitand

meaningfulfeedback,(b)offeringchoiceinwritingtopics,(c)makingwritingfun

andenjoyableandpossessinganenthusiasmforthesubject,(d)providingadequate

instructioninwritingfoundations,skill,andgrammar,(e)allowingadequatetime

forwritingpractice,and(f)helpingstudentsunderstandingthe“why”ofwriting,

138

wereinthecontextofboththeparticipantaswriterandfutureteachers.Since

teachertrainingprogramsmustdealwithstudents’writinglevels,aswellas

contemplatetheirmajorsasfutureteachers,recommendationswillbemade

regardingeachthemewithinthisframework‐‐preserviceteachersaswritersand

preserviceteachersasfuturewritingteachers.

PreserviceTeachersasWriters

Studentsenterteachertrainingprogramswithawidevarietyofwriting

abilities,educationalexperiences,andattitudesandbeliefsaboutwriting.The

attitudesandbeliefstheybringtotheprogramplayapowerfulroleinhowtheywill

approachwritinginstruction(Chambless&Bass,1995;Colby&Stapleton,2006,

Lortie,1975;Morgan,2010;Street,2003;Street&Stang,2009).Theseconcerns

simplycannotbeminimalizedwhenconsideringcurriculuminteachereducation

programs.Iftheseissuesareignored,thereisaclearriskofperpetuatingthe

problem.Throughswiftandaffirmativeaction,teachereducatorscanbreakthe

cycleandcreateconfidentandcompetentwriterswhoarewell‐preparedforwriting

instruction.

Asthe2011NAEPNationalCenterforEducationStatistics(2012)reportso

dramaticallyillustrated,75%ofstudentsingradeseightand12arenotproficient

writers.Thesestudentsareenteringtheworkforceandouruniversities.Itfollows

thatsomeofthesestudentswillmajorinelementaryeducation.Yet,weexpectthese

verystudents,wholackcompetenceandconfidence,tobecomewritingteachers

139

whentheylacktheskillsthemselves.Withoutaddressingtheproblem,thiscyclewill

undoubtedlycontinue.

Attheinstitutionallevel,thefirststepistoacknowledgethattherearereal

problemswhichcollegestudentsencounter.Universitiesshouldconsideradding

morewritingrequirementsbeyondWRIT101.Infact,additionalwritingcourses

shouldbeembeddedwithineverymajorwithoneclassperacademicyear.Doingso,

however,requiresaninstitutionalcommitmenttoimprovedwritingacrossthe

curriculumandfinancialsupportfortheadditionalfacultyandcoursedevelopment.

Italsorequiresscaffoldingforfacultywhomaynotknowhowtoincorporate

writingintotheircontentarea.Butaconcertedeffortatthislevelwouldreap

countlessbenefitsforgraduatesandemployers.

ForDepartmentsofEducation,thesechangesrequirenotonlymonetary

contributions,butafirmbeliefthattheywillmeettheirstudents“wheretheyare.”

Bydoingso,programscanthenprovidethenecessarycourseworkandsupportfor

theirmajorstogrowandthriveaswriters.Teachereducatorsmustavoidthe

assumptionthatpreserviceteachersactuallywriteorenjoywriting(Draper,

Barksdale‐Ladd,&Radencich,2000).Sincestudentstypicallyreceivemoretraining

inreadingprinciplesandpedagogy(Hall&Grisham‐Brown,2014;Norman&

Spencer,2005),onesimplesolutionistoofferawritingprinciplesandpedagogy

class.Inthiscourse,preserviceteacherscouldreceiveconstructivefeedbackto

improvetheirwriting,haveampletimetopractice,andestablishafirmfoundation

ingrammarandskills.Throughmodelinganddirectinstruction,studentswould

140

learnhowtoincorporatechoiceoftopics,whichalsomakeswritingfunand

enjoyable,aswellaslearnwaystoincorporatethenotionof“why”write.Withouta

coursestrictlydevotedtowriting,thereissimplynowaytoaccomplishthis

monumentaltask.

Alsowithinthecontextofawritingcourse,itwouldbecriticaltoincorporate

areflectioncomponentthatallowsstudentstodelveintoanexaminationoftheir

ownwritingattitudesandbeliefs.AccordingtoHawkinsandRazali(2012)writing

histories“influencesnotonlythepractice[ofwriting]itself,butthewaysinwhich

weeachengagewithandenactthesepracticesinourclassrooms”(p.305).Norman

andSpencer(2005)concurredthatself‐examinationofwritingattitudesandbeliefs

isnotonlycriticaltounderstandingthem,butforchangingtheirtrajectory.Inthis

way,trainingprogramscantakeacriticalstanceandfosterachangeinhow

studentsapproachwriting(Norman&Spencer,2005).AccordingtoStangand

Street(2011),anexaminationofwritinghistories“providesaplaceforteachersto

grow”(p.40).Teachertrainingprogramsaresingularlypoisedtohelpstudentsface

theirfearsaboutwriting,improvetheirlevelofcompetenceandself‐confidence,and

reshapetheirattitudesandbeliefsintomorepositiveonesbeforetheyenterthe

classroomfull‐time.Inaddition,awritingcoursewouldgivestrongwritersthe

opportunitytoreinforce,strengthen,andhonetheircraft.Attitudescanbechanged

andimprovedbycoursesthatfosterpositiveexperiencesandoutcomeswith

writing(Street,2003).

141

However,ifanadditionalcoursecouldnotbeincludedduetototalcreditsfor

graduationconstraints,anotheralternativewouldbeastandardgradingrubricfor

writingwithinthedepartmentofeducation.Allfacultymemberswithinthe

departmentcouldcometogethertodeveloparubricthatwouldbeusedtoevaluate

writtenassignmentwithinthedepartment.Usingamodelsuchasthe6+1traits

couldprovideaframeworkforevaluationandasharedlanguageforwriting

assignments.

StudentsasFutureWritingTeachers

Tobecomeconfidentandeffectivewriters,teachersmustbecome

comfortablewiththeconceptandprocessofwriting(Bratcher&Stroble,1994).But

itismorethanjustpossessingalevelofcomfort.Simplystated,teachersmustbe

writersthemselves.Theymustunderstandthe“processofwritingfromwithin”

(Murray,2003,p.74).Bybeingawriter,ateachercanhelpstudentscomprehend

thechallengesandstrugglesthatareaninherentpartoftheprocessbecausethe

teacherhasexperiencedthemfirst‐hand(Augsburger,1998;Bloom,1990;

Gebhardt,1977;Morgan,2010;Smith,1983).Thisshiftrenegotiatestheteacher’s

rolefrom“evaluative”or“judgmental”inthefinalproductviewtoamore

“cooperative,advisoryroleasconsultant”(Root&Steinberg,1996,p.xix).Although

itisimportantforwritingteacherstobeactiveparticipantsintheprocess,itisalso

criticalfromanattitudinalperspective.Draper,Barksdale‐Ladd,andRadencich,

(2000)framedtheissueingraveterms:“Wedonotbelievethatteacherswho

dislikereadingandwritingcaneffectivelyfostertheloveofreadingandwritingin

142

thechildrentheyteach”(p.187).Inotherwords,ifteachersdonotunderstandand

engageintheprocessofwriting,itishighlyunlikelytheywillbeabletonurture

thosepositiveattitudesintheirfutureclassrooms.Whilenoteveryteachermay

ultimatelyenjoywriting,havingafirmgrasponthefoundationalskillswill

necessarilyincreasethelevelofconfidenceinwritinginstruction.

Byrequiringacoursedevotedtowritingprinciplesandpedagogy,

universitiescanbegintobridgethechasmthatleavesmanygraduatesfeelingill‐

preparedtowriteandtoteachwriting.Duetothewidedisparityintheamountof

writinginstructioninteachertrainingprograms,manycurrentteachershave

expressedthattheyfeltunpreparedorunder‐preparedtoteachwriting(Chambless

&Bass,1995;Daisey,2009;Martin&Dismuke,2015;Morgan,2010;Tulley,2013).

TheNationalCommissiononWriting(2003)expresslynotedthatthereistypically

“littleinstructioninhowtoteachwriting”andthatgraduatesare“illequippedto

teachit”(p.23).AccordingtotheNationalCommissiononWriting(2003),“no

matterhowhardtheywork,theseinstructors,lackinganyrealunderstandingof

whatgoodwritingisorlookslike,areoftenillequippedtoteachit”(p.23).

Similarly,theNationalWritingProjectfurtherunderscoredthatalackofemphasis

onwritinghasbeenanon‐goingissue(Whitney&Friedrich,2013).Atminimum,a

coursethatprovideswritingfoundations,grammar,andmeaningfulfeedbackand

practicewouldhelpremediateweakordeficientwritingskillsforthosewhodesire

toteachK‐8students.

143

Astand‐alonewritingcoursecouldalsobolsterlevelsofself‐confidenceof

teachercandidatesbeforetheyenterclassroomsoftheirown.Sinceeducation

majors’attitudesandbeliefsaboutparticularsubjectsandinstructionareuniquely

shapedoverthecourseoftheireducationalcareers,teachertrainingprogramshave

theopportunitytohelpstudentsexamineandreframethem(Martin&Dismuke,

2015).Thesenegativeperceptionsaboutwritinghavea“lastingeffect”willcarry

overintotheclassroom(Street&Stang,2009,p.85).However,theseattitudesare

notstaticorfixed(Hall&Grisham‐Brown,2011).Thesedeleteriousfeelingscanbe

improvedbycoursesthatofferpositiveexperienceswithwriting(Street,2003).Asa

result,teachereducatorshavetheuniqueopportunitytoencouragereflectionupon

astudent’spersonalwritinghistoryandtakeaffirmativestepstofosterpositive

attitudinalshifts.

SuggestionsforFutureResearch

Writingistheneglectedelementintheinstructionaltriadknownasthe3Rs

–reading,writing,andarithmetic‐andithasalsobeenlargelyignoredinthe

research.Consequently,numeroustopicsareripeforfurtherinvestigation.

First,alarge‐scaleprojectcouldexaminethewritingattitudesandbeliefsof

studentswhoareenteringelementaryeducationprogramsnationwide.TheWAT

couldbeadministeredatthebeginningoftheprogramandagainatgraduationto

compareanychangesinattitudeduringtheirtraining.Datacouldbeassembledby

institutionandexaminedtodeterminethoseprogramswiththegreatestimpactin

144

fosteringpositiveshifts.Thoseprogramscouldthenbeexploredtodeterminewhat

factorsmayhaveinfluencedthechanges.

Next,moreresearchcouldexaminetheimpactofreflectionuponpersonal

writinghistoriesinteachereducationprograms.Infollowingtheresearchof

HawkinsandRazali(2012)andStangandStreet(2011),anin‐depthreviewofthe

waysinwhichprogramsutilizereflectiontoeffectuateattitudinalshiftscouldoffer

insightintowaystoincorporatethispracticeintocourseworkandpracticum

experiences.

Finally,researcherscouldexaminetheimpactofpost‐graduationwriting

supportforteachersintheirfirstthreeyearsintheclassroom.Bydoingso,

institutionscouldgleanavaluableunderstandingoftheneedsoftheirgraduates

withinthecommunity.Withthisknowledge,programscouldadjustandchangeto

betterservetheirgraduatesandtheK–8studentsintheircommunities.

SummaryandConclusion

Studentsinteachertrainingprogramscomefromawiderangeof

experienceswithwriting.Accordingly,thelevelsofwritingcompetencyastudent

maypossessvarygreatly.Thoseexperiences,bothintheclassroomandfrom

externalsources,arealsolargelyresponsiblefortheattitudesandbeliefsstudents

holdaboutwritingandthemselvesaswriters.Whiletheseattitudesmaybedeeply

held,theyarenotfixedandcanbechanged.Bybetterunderstandingtheseattitudes,

howtheyareshaped,andhowtheycanbetransformed,teachertrainingprograms

145

canbepositionedtohelptheirstudentsdeveloptheirwritingskillsandtheirself‐

confidenceaswriters.

146

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APPENDICES

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APPENDIXA

EDU330EMERGENTLITERACYSYLLABUS

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EDU 330 Syllabus/Spring 2016

Bring EDU 330 coursepack and any readings assigned as HW to class. This tentative schedule may be adjusted due to student needs.

WEEK 1 Jan. 14 (Th)

Introduction to course

Survey, pre-assessments D’Nealian handwriting HW:

CP article: Why Teachers Need to Write Well

Writing Journal: Introduce yourself

Book Scavenger Hunts: Purpose and Construction. Practice with Sound It Out!

Module 1: nouns

Who are your instructors? Department of Education website search. Study any 4 c.v.’s in “Curriculum & Instruction.” One must be your instructor. Who has “walked the walk” and actually taught in K-8 settings?

WEEK 2 Jan. 19 (T)

WT: that vs. who, Rule of 3

4 language arts + 5 building blocks

Basal readers: Dick and Jane

D’Nealian handwriting: Palmer/vertical (ball-stick) vs. D’Nealian/Slanted HW:

WJ: Goals

Create scavenger hunt with BOL

D’Nealian –copy favorite poem as per CP instructions

Read D’Nealian handwriting notes in CP

Read Chapter 1 (Savage)

Design study guide for Chapter 1

Word Collection #1: Rule of 3

Module 2: verbs

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Jan. 21 (TH)

WT: appositives, sentence combining, avoid weak linking verbs

Reading teacher vocabulary

History of reading

Phonemes vs. graphemes

Building blocks: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, comprehension

HW:

Design study guide for chapter

Read D2L posting: Why Johnny Can’t Read excerpt

Design quiz for classmate on Rudolph Flesch’s excerpt


Design a study guide for Chapter 2

Practice D’Nealian, review CP notes about rationale for teaching handwriting

Writing tips practice, appositive practice in CP

Modules 3 + 4 (Adjectives, Adverbs)

BA WEEK 3 Jan. 26 (T)

D’Nealian assignment due

WT: Varied openers—introductory prepositional phrases

BOL Scavenger hunt exchange activity

Phonemic awareness skills and activities

Syllables-in-my-name game HW:

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WJ: Prepositional phrase poems + reflection

Word Collection #2: Compound adjectives + noun

Read CP article by Yopp & Yopp on phonemic awareness

Prepare for quiz on Yopp & Yopp reading

Study CP pages on phonics order: Understand early. intermediate vs. advanced word/phonics study sequence

Study CP language activities. Select your favorite 3. Be prepared to lead class with one activity.

TBA

Jan. 28 (Th) WT: Varied openers—infinitive phrases

Phonics: 3-part definition, one-to-one correspondence, graphic organizer consonant doubles: blends vs. digraphs vs. silent combos vs. doublets

W vs. WH. Practice exercises CP. HW:

Read first section of Chapter 3 on “consonants” (Savage)

Design study guide for chapter 3/first section: consonants

Complete phonics + parts of speech matrix CP

Word Collection #3: Blends and Digraphs

Investigate special consonants C and G—what is the generalization? Hint: vowel markers. Write the generalization as Savage presents it in chapter 3 and be prepared to share this information in class.

Modules 5 + 6 (Prepositions, Direct/Indirect Objects)

Fun Quiz CP (As you have read chapters 1 + 2 in Savage, this quick review exercise should take you no more than 20 minutes.)

Write a paragraph that provides a phonics teaching sequence rationale: (1) consonants before vowels, (2) single consonants before double consonant units, and (3) C/G principle. Word process and double-space text. Create a key or code that identifies a particular color to a writing tip. Finally, use different colored

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highlighters to differentiate writing tips. Remember, content is king. First draft your initial thoughts and then go back and read aloud, revising as needed to incorporate all writing tips, which have been addressed in class. Your task is to have explained: Why do teachers teach the particulars of phonics (consonants and vowels) in a fairly standard order? (versus a willy-nilly, random approach to instruction?)

Note: you should be able to draft a rationale paragraph in 10-15 minutes; your revision with attention to writing presentation and writing tips should take no more than 10 more minutes. Total time for this assignment: 30 minutes or

less.

WEEK 4 Feb. 2 (T)

WT: Varied openers—verbals

Peer review of rationale paragraphs

Peer review of Word Collection #3

Quiz on Modules 1-6

Soft/hard C/G principle

Soft/hard C names activity

Activities to practice C/G, read aloud: Prince Cinders HW:

WJ: Dear Ann

C/G cloze activity in CP

Word Collection #4

Read chapter 3 in Savage (vowels). Study carefully short vs. long vowels.

Take-home quiz

TBA Feb. 4 (Th)

Review WT—subject/pronoun agreement, number/amount, few/less

Phonics BINGO

vowel categories: short/long/other; rationale for instructional order; full-time vs. part-time vowels, initial vs. medial vs. final position---English is a positional language

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Short vowels: patterns, phonograms, word families

Decodable text

High-image short-vowel words

Read aloud: Cats Know Best

HW: Courspack review exercises

Reread Chapter 3, vowels (Savage)

Design study guide for chapter 3/second section (vowels)

Module 7 (Predicate nouns, predicate adjectives)

Bring BOL to class

Take-home quiz

TBA WEEK 5 Feb. 9 (T)

WT: AAAWWUUBBIS words (subordinating conjunctions used to introduce dependent clauses)

Long vowels: patterns (magic-e, digraphs, 49% generalization “When two vowels go a-walking…), phonograms, word families

BOL search Section 1 for vowel lists, phonogram lists

Brainstorm CVC words that change their short-vowel sounds to become long-vowels with the “silent-e” (Compare with BOL list)

HW:

WJ: Grade inflation

Reread chapter 3 short section about “R-controlled vowels”

Reread the short paragraph in chapter 3 that presents vowel teaching order and rationales

Write a paragraph that presents a rationale for why teachers might elect to teach vowel elements in each of the following ways: (1) short vowels before long vowels, (2) long vowels before short vowels, and (3)

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short and long vowels together/contrast. Finally, take a stance and explain your positionality—why do you believe the approach you advocate is the best one? Word process, double-space text. Create a key or code that identifies a particular color to a writing tip. Finally, use different colored highlighters to differentiate the following: introductory prepositional phrases, introductory verbal phrases, introductory subordinate clause/introductory phrase that begins with AAAWWUUBBIS words, appositive phrases, and rule of 3. Remember, content is king; first draft your initial thoughts and then go back and read aloud, revising as needed to incorporate all writing tips, which have been addressed in class. [Note: you should be able to draft a rationale paragraph in 15 minutes; your revision with attention to writing presentation and writing tips should take no more than an additional 15 minutes. Total time for this assignment: approximately 30 minutes.]

Feb. 11 (Th)

WT: short sentence; review varied openers

R-controlled vowels (bossy-r combos, -ar, -or and other patterns)

Special vowel digraphs: long- and short-double o

Functions of Y as consonant and vowel (position): implications for decoding and encoding

HW:

Word Collection #5: Varied openers

Writing tips practice TBA

Y and W practice

List 5 example words for each generalization in CP

Categorize words and identify spelling pattern

Read Phonics in Proper Perspective excerpt (D2L pdf. file)

Module 8 (Four basic sentence types)

TBA President’s Day Federal holiday Feb. 15 WEEK 6 Feb. 16 (T)

WT: Point of view (POV)

Vowel diphthongs: au/aw, ou/ow, oi/oy

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Read aloud: Mrs. Huggins and her Hen Hannah HW:

WJ: Busy work

Word sort

Provide minimum of 5 example words for each vowel generalization

Complete Mrs. Huggins phonics word sort activity Feb. 18 (Th)

WT: Topic sentences/word choice

Phonics knowledge to aid in spelling short- and long-vowel words, homophones

Syllable patterns: closed, open, silent -e

Schwa

Direct, explicit instruction and the 4-parts of an instructional lesson HW:

Phonics and grammar review exercise

Topic sentence exercise

Read Chapter 4 in Savage

Design a study aid to accompany chapter 4

Phonics Mastery assignment

Take-home quiz

No Modules assigned this weekend; instead focus on upcoming mid-term

WEEK 7 Feb. 23 (T)

WT: Share topic sentence HW responses

Quiz on Chapter 4 (Savage)—open notes

Review explicit, systematic phonics approaches

Review activities in coursepack: vocabulary sort, expectancies HW:

WJ: Michael Stone, winners vs. whiners

Read chapter 6 in Savage

Design a study aid to accompany this short summary chapter

Read “Clarifying Phonics” in CP

Read “Basic Principles” in CP

Complete phonics cloze summary

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Take-home quiz Feb. 25 (Th)

WT: semi-colon

Phonics BINGO (expert version)

Review for mid-term

Review syllable patterns: open, closed, silent-e

HW:

Re-do Phonics Mastery assignment only if mastery not met

Mock mid-term

Mid-term preparation


Design study guide

CP spelling questionnaire

T-chart: Characteristics of Able Spellers vs. Challenged Spellers (behaviors and attitudes)

TBA WEEK 8 March 1 (T)

Spelling and phonics

Spelling stages: scribbling….conventional

Able vs. tentative readers + spellers: behaviors and attitudes

Mid-term practice (item types: constructed response, application and analysis) HW:

WJ: Favorite Quote

Prepare for mid-term March 3 (TH) Mid-term—full class period HW

Word Collection #6: Varied word choice

Read pdf. file in D2L: So What’s a Schwa Sound Anyway?

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Compose a 2-paragraph response: paragraph 1 offers a narrative summary of salient points; paragraph 2 is your reflection/analysis of ideas. Word process, double-space.

Vowels Rule! CP spelling rules for primary-grade students

TBA

WEEK 9 March 8 (T)

What makes English spelling difficult?

Spelling generalizations and English orthography, Phonics informs encoding---how?

Able vs. tentative spellers: skills and behaviors HW:

WJ: Free choice

Read CP article: Spelling exceptions: Problems or possibilities?

Vowels Rule!

TBA

March 10 (TH) Activities and then follow-up quiz on FLSZ, Catch a Lunch, Kiss the Cat, the

Milk Truck, and other spelling rules

Spelling lists: Analyze grade 4 list

Modules 9 and 10 (Conjunctions and Sentence Patterns—simple, complex, compound, compound-complex)

TBA

HW (to be completed over spring break)

WJ: Identify 2-3 goals for yourself (check in with what you wrote during Week 2) as we enter the final third of the semester. How will you be pro-active in taking steps to realize these goals?

Read CP spelling article: What Can Children’s Spelling of….

Read Chapter 4 in Allington’s What Really Matters to Struggling Readers

Create a study guide to accompany Allington’s Chapter 4

Module 11

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Read Allington’s What Really Matters to Struggling Readers on your own time. I will not formally assign chapters; consider this a chance to pace yourself with your other assignments. Focus on chapters 2-6 for final exam.

WEEK 10--NO CLASSES week of March 14-18

March 17 WEEK 11 March 22 (T)

Past tense: /d/, /t/, and /ed/

Preview Word Collection #7: -ED as morphological marker

Fluency defined

Fluency, sight words, DOLCH words, how fluency impacts comprehension HW:

WJ: “Do-overs” vs. “getting it right” the first time

Word Collection #7: -ED as morphological marker

Read CP article on fluency: Reading Fluency Assessment and Instruction

Take-home quiz based on CP fluency article

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March 24(Th) Reader’s Theater

Morphemic analysis, word structure, free and bound morphemes, inflected vs. derived words, syllable patterns

Case study #1: Fluency + Word Recognition

HW: Case study #1

Module 12

Word Collection #8: Derived Words

TBA WEEK 11 March 29 (T)

Case study #1 due

Morphemic analysis, syllable patterns cont.

Mastery assignment: Morphemic analysis

HW:

WJ: Dear Ann

Word Collection #9: Syllable patterns

Read in Allington text: How to select vocabulary words

Read in Allington text: Tier 1, 2, and 3 words

TBA

March 31 (Th) Vocabulary pre-test

Vocabulary do-rights

Vocabulary levels (unknown, acquainted, established)

Lean versus rich context clues

Read aloud: The Story of Z

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HM: CP vocabulary support material

Story of Z activities

Module 13

Word Collection activities WEEK 12 April 5 (T)

Case study #2: Vocabulary

Comprehension skills, levels

Read aloud: Dandelion HW:

WJ: Dear Ann

Word Collection #10: Free choice

Take-home quiz April 7 (Th)

Teacher analysis of textual features: page layout, white space, sentence presentation, language features

Read aloud: Crow Boy

Vocabulary activities

HW: Case study #2

Module 14

Take-home quiz

TBA WEEK 13 April 12 (T)

Case study #2 due

Comprehension activities applied with read aloud: TBD

HW:

WJ: “Pretty good” might not be good enough

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WJ: Work on Showcase Writing journal entry to be shared

Take-home quiz

TBA April 14 (Th)

Early writing experiences: lists, writing from a picture

6+1 traits assessment of student writing HW:

Dyslexia reading (D2L pdf. file)

Take-home quiz WEEK 14 April 19(T)

Sharing Day for Writing Journals—3 copies to be randomly distributed to classmates

Dyslexia—preparation for case study

Case study #3: Dyslexia HW:

Case study #3

Take-home quiz April 21 (Th)

Poetry fun + reading comprehension

Review activities for the final

Sample exam items shared

HW: Case study #3

WEEK 15 April 28 (T)

Case study #3 due

Review activities for the final

Sample exam items shared

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HW: TBA April 28 (Th)

End-of-semester review activities to prepare for the final

FINAL EXAM: May 2, 12-2 p.m. Room TBA EDU 330 ASSIGNMENTS

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EDU 330 Emergent Literacy

Spring 2016

Instructor: Ann Ellsworth, Ph.D. Office: 138A Reid Hall Office Phone: 994-5793 Office Hours: Tuesdays/Thursdays 11:30-1:30; other times TBA; also by appointment Email Contact: [email protected] Required Texts (all are available in the MSU Bookstore) 1. EDU 330 Emergent Literacy Coursepack (Ann Ellsworth) 2. Sound It Out (John Savage, most recent edition) 3. What Really Matters for Struggling Readers (Richard Allington, most recent edition) 4. The Reading Teacher's Book of Lists (Ed Fry and Jacqueline Kress, most recent edition) Assignments* Due Dates Surveys (3 points) Throughout the semester Mastery: D'Nealian printing/manuscript (3 points) Week 2 Mastery: Phonics (2 attempts) (5 points) Week 6 Mid-term exam (35 points) Week 7 Mastery: Morphemic analysis (2 attempts) (5 points) Week 13 Quizzes (18 points) Throughout the semester Case study responses (36 points) Throughout the semester Writing Journal (15 points) Throughout the semester Word Collection (10 points) Throughout the semester Final Exam (comprehensive) (70 points) Finals Week/TBA Grading (total points: 200) *Due dates are approximate; they may be adjusted depending on pacing of course topics, etc.

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A 92-100% A- 90-91% B+ 88-89% B 82-87% B- 80-81% C+ 78-79% C 72-77% C- 70-71% To make continuous progress in the Teacher Education Program at Montana State University-Bozeman, students must earn a “C” or better.

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APPENDIXB

DALY‐MILLERWRITINGAPPREHENSIONTEST(WAT)

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DALY‐MILLERWRITINGAPPREHENSIONTEST(WAT)Directions:Belowareaseriesofstatementsaboutwriting.Therearenorightorwronganswerstothesestatements.Pleaseindicatethedegreetowhicheachstatementappliestoyoubycirclingwhetheryou(1)stronglyagree,(2)agree,(3)areuncertain,(4)disagree,or(5)stronglydisagreewiththestatement.Whilesomeofthesestatementsmayseemrepetitious,takeyourtimeandtrytobeashonestaspossible.Therearenorightorwronganswers.Thankyouforyourcooperationinthismatter.1.Iavoidwriting.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree2.Ihavenofearofmywritingbeingevaluated.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree3.Ilookforwardtowritingdownmyideas.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree4.IamafraidofwritingessayswhenIknowtheywillbeevaluated.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree5.Takingacompositioncourseisaveryfrighteningexperience.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree6.Handinginacompositionmakesmefeelgood.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree7.MymindseemstogoblankwhenIstarttoworkonacomposition.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree8.Expressingideasthroughwritingseemstobeawasteoftime.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree9.Iwouldenjoysubmittingmywritingtomagazinesforevaluationandpublication.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree10.Iliketowritemyideasdown.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree11.Ifeelconfidentinmyabilitytoclearlyexpressmyideasinwriting.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree12.IliketohavemyfriendsreadwhatIhavewritten.

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(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree13.I’mnervousaboutwriting.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree14.PeopleseemtoenjoywhatIwrite.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree15.Ienjoywriting.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree16.Ineverseemtobeabletoclearlywritedownmyideas(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree17.Writingisalotoffun.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree18.IexpecttodopoorlyincompositionclassesevenbeforeIenterthem.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree19.Ilikeseeingmythoughtsonpaper.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree20.Discussingmywritingwithothersisanenjoyableexperience.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree21.Ihaveaterribletimeorganizingmyideasinacompositioncourse.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree22.WhenIhandinacompositionIknowI’mgoingtodopoorly.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree23.It’seasyformetowritegoodcompositions.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree24.Idon’tthinkIwriteaswellasmostotherpeople.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree25.Idon’tlikemycompositionstobeevaluated.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree26.I’mnogoodatwriting.(1)stronglyagree(2)agree(3)uncertain(4)disagree(5)stronglydisagree

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Daly,J.A.&Miller,M.D.(1975).Theempiricaldevelopmentofaninstrumenttomeasurewritingapprehension.ResearchinTeachingEnglish,9(3),242–249.Retrievedfromhttp://www.jstor.org/stable/40170632

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APPENDIXC

WRITTENQUESTIONAIRRE

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1.Myelementaryschoolwritingteachersdidagoodjobwhenthey:2.Iwouldhavelearnedmoreabouthowtobecomeabetterwriterifmyteachershad:3.Thebesttwowaysawritingteachercanhelpstudentsis:4.Theworsttwothingsawritingteachercandoare:5(a).Lookingback,Iwishmywritingteacherswouldhave:5(b).Rightnowinmyteachereducationcourses,Iwishmyinstructorswould:6.Thenumberonegoalforawriteris:7.Mymostsignificantmemoryaboutwritingis:8.Thepersonwhohadthemostinfluenceonmywritingis________________________becauses/he:9.Tomethetwomostimportantthingsaboutwritingare:10.WhenIamateacher,thetwomostimportantthingsIcandotohelpstudentswithwritingare:

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APPENDIXD

GRAPHICREPRESENTATION:WRITINGMEMORIESMATRIX

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WritingmemoriesForeachtimeperiodpleasemakeadrawingthatrepresentsamemoryaboutwriting

Pre‐Kthroughgrade4 Grades5‐8

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Grades9‐12 College

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APPENDIXE

SEMI‐STRUCTUREDINTERVIEW#1

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Semi‐structuredinterview#1Generalbackgroundinformation:a.Educationalbackground–highschoolsize/gradesb.Yearintheprogramc.Favoriteeducationcourses/whyd.Leastfavoriteeducationcourses/whye.Favoritenon‐educationcourses/whyf.Leastfavoritenon‐educationcourses/why1.Discussionofdrawing:

a. Pre‐K–grade4b. Grades5–8c. Grades9‐12d. College

2.Whattraitsdoyouthinkmakeagoodwriter?3.Whataspectsofwritingdoyoufindeasyorenjoyable?4.Whatexperienceshaveyouhadthatinfluencedthis?5.Whataspectsofwritingdoyoufinddifficultorchallenging?6.Whatexperienceshaveyouhadthatmayhaveinfluencedthis?7.Whattwowordsbestdescribeyouasawriter?8.Whenyouthinkaboutbeingateacher,whatdoyouthinkwillbethetwomostimportantfactorsinteacherwritingtostudents?9.Whatstrengthswillyoubringtoteachingwriting?10.Whatchallengeswillyouhavetoovercome?11.Finishthesentence.Thebestwritingteachers:

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APPENDIXF

FOCUSGROUPQUESTIONS

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Opening:1.Tellusyournameandyouryearintheprogram.Introductory:2.Whatarethefirstthreethingsthatcometomindwhenyouthinkaboutwriting?3.Writing:positiveornegativeexperience?Why?Transition:

4.Lookingback,whatfactorsmayhaveinfluencedyourfeelingsaboutwriting?Keyquestions:5.Whatdoesthewritingprocesslooklikeforyou?6.Whatpartsofthewritingprocessfeeleasyorenjoyabletoyou?7.Whatpartsofthewritingprocessfeelfrustratingorchallenging?8.Hasyourwritingprocesschanged?Ifso,how?Whatpromptedthosechanges?9.Whatisyourviewofteachingwriting?Inyourfutureclassroom,whatthreethingswillplayakeyroleinwritinginstruction?Endingquestions:10.Ifyouhadachancetogivefuturewritingteachersadvice,whatwouldyousay?11.Movingforward,arethereanychangeswouldyousuggesttoimprovewritinginstructioninourteachereducationprogram?12.Isthereanythingelseanyonewouldliketoaddthatyoudidn’tgetachancetosay?

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APPENDIXG

SEMI‐STRUCTUREDINTERVIEWQUESTIONS#2

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Semi‐structuredinterview#21.Whattraitsmakeagoodwriter?2.Whataspectsofwritingdoyoufindeasyorenjoyableatthispoint?3.Whatfactorsinfluencedthis?4.Whataspectsofwritingdoyoufinddifficultorchallengingatthispoint?5.Whatfactorsinfluencedthis?6.Whenyouthinkbacktothebeginningofthesemester,howdidyoufeelaboutwriting?7.Haveyourfeelingsaboutwritingchanged?Ifso,how?8.Whenyouthinkbacktothebeginningofthesemester,howdidyoufeelaboutyourselfasawriter?9.Haveyourfeelingsaboutwritingchanged?Ifso,how?10.Whattwowordswouldyouusetodescribeyourselfasawritertoday?Explainwhy.11.Atthispoint,whatstrengthsdoyoubelieveyouwillbringtoteachingwriting?12.Atthispoint,whatobstacleswillyoustillhavetoovercomeinteachingwriting?13.Whatstepswillyoutaketoovercomethese?14.Pleasefinishthesentence:Thebestwritingteachers:15.WhenIthinkofmyselfasawritingteacher,Iwillalways:16.WhenIthinkofmyselfasawritingteacher,Iwillnever:

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